Breathe
by Ceredwen
Summary: HG/SB Sirius is propelled forward through time by a magical accident. He has to adjust to all the changes and maybe find love in the process. A romance between Hermione/Sirius.
1. Broken

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of the characters, I just like to play with them**

Broken

Melon colored ribbons of sunlight filtered through the gauzy curtains, retreating slowly out of the second story window. In their place shadows crept steadily forward across the small bedroom, ever bolder, as Sirius slowly dressed. The soft sound of a zipper being pulled up drew the attention of the sated blond who adorned the bed in an alluring fashion.

"Do you have to go?" she asked in a sweet, sensuous voice. Sirius' turned back gave her a perfect view of his tight, toned arse which he had just poured into some leather pants. It was with effort that she stifled a sigh, preventing it from adding to his already considerable ego.

"Sorry, love," he replied, a note of regret in his voice. "I've got to check on a friend."

Their rather pleasing afternoon together had started in the Three Broomsticks where Sirius had gone looking for an amusing diversion to quell the nervous feeling in his gut. He knew of no better distraction than the one they had been pursuing for the last few hours and it had worked nicely for a time but the gnawing fizz of discontent was back and he knew he would have to answer its call.

"Alright," she said, disappointed. "Maybe I'll see you around." Harboring no illusions about him, she knew about best she could hope for was a repeat performance.

"Sure," he said noncommittally but honestly. It had been fun and she didn't seem clingy. Just his type.

Sirius sat down on the bed and let her slither over to him, the last dark orange embrace of sunlight made her skin appear to glow. Wrapping her arms around his neck so she could satisfy her fingers in his hair, she draped half of her thin, firm body across his lap. Their lips met in a kiss that spoke of imminent separation but also hinted at future fun.

"See you around?" said Sirius, breaking away first.

"Anytime," she affirmed seductively.

Without another word he stood up from the bed and exited the bedroom and then her small apartment. He jaunted down the stairs and out of the double doors into an alleyway that was just off of High Street in Hogsmeade.

Parked in the alleyway was a gleaming black motorbike that seemed to wink at him in the last gasps of sunlight. He hopped on and straddled the enormous bike between his legs as he kicked the stand back. A flick of his wand had it roaring to life, the sound reverberating between the fence and the apartment building.

Steering down the alleyway while making sure no was watching, Sirius pushed a button which lifted the front tire off of the ground, followed by the rest of the bike. He hit the accelerator and shot quickly upwards to hide his motorized contraband above the clouds.

Travelling south he watched as the pink and purple evidence of the day was replaced by even darker purple, blue and eventually black. The stars overhead twinkled in greeting and as was his custom he leaned back in the seat and looked for his star in the night sky.

The nervous feeling of foreboding was back, churning like acid in his chest. He had performed the Fidelius Charm on the Potter's home and Pettigrew earlier that day and for some reason he felt that something was off. For the thousandth time he questioned whether or not he had done the right thing.

The country was stifled in the grips of war and his two closest companions were at the very heart of the conflict. Few walked away once they had been marked for death by Voldemort.

Unbeknownst to most of the wizarding world was that the best hope for freedom from the darkest evil the world had seen in many years resided in the tiny body of a baby boy who had just crossed the year mark a few months back. It would be years before he could take up his part in the fight and that fact alone spoke of many more dark years ahead for them all.

Sirius wasn't supposed to know about the prophecy but Dumbledore was a fool to think that James wouldn't share that knowledge with him. It angered him when he thought about how an innocent such as Harry was already tainted by conflict and hatred.

As the lights of London twinkled in the distance his thoughts turned to little Peter and he wondered again if he had done the right thing. It had been a last minute decision which was made because of a suspected spy in the Order of the Phoenix. A few knew that Sirius was to be named Secret Keeper but none knew of Peter.

Peter was a good lad but not the bravest or the most skilled of wizards. Sirius had often wondered how he had made it into Gryffindor at all. His sycophantic love for James guaranteed loyalty in all of their minds but if it ever got out that a switch had been made…

Well, nothing to worry about there. Only four people in the world knew of the eleventh-hour change and two of them had the most to risk of all. Peter's fear and love would keep his mouth shut and he, Sirius Black, could be crucio'd into insanity before the secret would pass his lips.

Sirius spotted the pattern of lights that he had been looking for and lowered the front tire for his descent. He landed the bike behind a brace of trees with a light bounce before the tires gripped the dirt beneath them. Sliding over the curb with a thump and mild jostle, Sirius directed his bike down the lane towards Peter's house.

The whole street was unusually calm for this small London suburb full of families with small children and laughter and toys, reminding him of the feeling he couldn't manage to quell. He made the right turn onto Peter's street, his eyes finding the little house with the friendly exterior.

Sirius stiffened immediately because instead of the soft glow from a reading lamp shining through the windows, the house was dark. Unconsciously he urged the bike forward a little faster coming to a sudden stop in front of Peter's house. Sirius steadied the bike onto the stand and leapt off, racing to the front door. He rang the bell twice, impatiently and peered through the windows finding only darkness.

He flicked his wand at the door, opening it easily and stepped across the threshold. "Pete?" he called out.

Flicking his wand at a few lamps bathed the house in light. What he saw made him catch his breath. It looked like someone had robbed and ransacked the place. All of the furniture was gone from the living room and paper was scattered and strewn across the floor.

Sirius stepped into the living room and knelt down to pick up something that caught his eye. As he looked at the picture that had been left behind his pulse thudded in his ears.

He shook his head. Something had obviously happened but Peter would never betray them and certainly not James, never James, his idol. Casting one last fearful glance around the house he pocketed the commencement picture of the Marauders and Lily. Thieves and Death Eaters would have no use for such a picture but Peter wouldn't have left it behind.

Sirius dashed out of the house, leapt to his bike and was in the air racing towards Godric's Hollow at reckless speeds. It took time to move things out and the spell had been cast earlier that very day. There was no way that they could have gotten the Secret out of Pete so soon, if they even knew he had it.

Before he reached Godric's Hollow he saw the smoke rising into the air. He hit the accelerator and closed in ever faster on his target.

_No! No! No! No! No!_

There wasn't time to get the secret out of Peter, of that he was sure. There was still time to get James, Lily and Harry to a new location. _There was still time!_

The tires bitched loudly as they made contact with the still warm asphalt. Sirius didn't give himself time to adjust before slamming his hand on the accelerator once again. The tires spun furiously leaving a thick, black mark as the bike fish tailed wildly but stayed on course. The engine's bellow caused a few lights to turn on in upstairs windows as he swept past house after house.

The closer he got to the Potter's house the stronger the scent of something burning became, acrid and painful to his nose. Disbelief flooded his brain as he pulled up to the house and threw off the bike, crashing it the ground but he didn't care.

The front of the house was completely collapsed with only half of the back still intact, somewhere in the wreckage he could hear the Potter's cat wailing in pain.

_Let them be gone! Let them be gone! Let them be gone!_

Sirius took one unwilling step after another as he ran up to the house where his best friend and the nicest girl he had ever known lived. The sound from the Potter's cat was closer now, loud and pitiful, he had never heard anything like it.

The roof appeared to have been blown back while the front of the was house blown in. A few small fires still flickered here and there and all the while the sound of the cat curdled in his stomach.

He finally made it up to the house and stepped over the blown out wall. A strangled sob escaped Sirius as there was no mistaking the broken body of James Potter. The staircase lay under him in broken bits of charred wood.

_Please! Please! Please! Please! Please!_

He felt for a pulse but he knew in his heart there wouldn't be one. Sirius looked into the unseeing eyes of his best friend before closing them forever. He reached his head down and in a gesture he had never before performed, kissed James' brow. _"Prongs," _he whispered, desolate.

Shakily and with great effort he stood up and flicked his wand, sending a Patronus to Dumbledore. The plaintive, desperate wailing caught his attention once again when he suddenly realized what it was and rushed forward, nearly falling over rubble with the effort.

Harry had crawled out of his broken crib and was trying frantically to wake his mother up, the screams from the inconsolable child sounding neither real nor human. Sirius picked Harry up and held him close to his chest whispering nonsense to him in an effort to calm the boy down. Harry recognized Sirius and clung to his neck, happy for any sort of comfort at all.

Sirius stared down at the vacant eyes of Lily Potter and held onto Harry tightly. The screams slowly turned into sobs which turned into hiccoughs. Sirius wrenched his eyes away from Lily to look at Harry, checking him over for any damage.

There was a small blood stained mark on the boy's forehead that looked like a bolt of lightening. Sirius shifted Harry in his arms so he could touch the wound gingerly. Harry winced and pulled away.

"No, Pah!" he said in the small voice of a child.

"Sorry, mate," murmured Sirius, wondering how Harry had gotten such an unusual cut.

Harry rested his head against Sirius' shoulder and began whispering to him. "Pah, Pah, Pah, Pah…"

"Padfoot's here," confirmed Sirius in a low, unsteady voice.

Bending down while shielding Harry with his body to prevent him from seeing what he was doing he closed Lily's eyes. Voldemort and his Death Eaters would be back for the boy soon so he had to get out of there with him. Just as he cleared the wreckage that had once been the Potter's home a wizard Apparated into the middle of the street.

"Noooo!" wailed Hagrid loudly, great shaking sobs wracking his body. "Are they?" Hagrid couldn't bring himself to ask if James and Lily were dead.

"They're gone," whispered Sirius, the full impact of which hadn't quite hit him as he was still in shock. He rubbed Harry gently on the back to keep him quiet as he strode slowly forward.

"Dumbledore got yer message," said Hagrid, his voice thick with sorrow. "He's alerted the Ministry."

Sirius nodded, still rubbing Harry's back and bouncing him in his arms. "That's good."

"Dumbledore sent me ter get Harry," sniffled Hagrid.

"What?" said Sirius, taking a step back. "No! I'm his godfather! I'll look after him!"

"Now look 'ere, Sirius," began Hagrid. "Dumbledore'll be knowin' wha's bes' an' he ses Harry is ter go live wi' his Aunt an' Uncle."

Sirius looked crestfallen as he pressed his face into Harry's neck. "James and Lily never wanted Petunia to have Harry."

"Dumbledore ses i's fer Harry's protection," pressed Hagrid.

"What? I'm not protection enough?" said Sirius hotly.

"He said sum'pthen abou' old magic, abou' Lily's blood protectin' Harry if he wen' an' lived with Petunia. He said you'd be knowin' wha' tha' means." Hagrid inched closer to Sirius.

Sirius slowly nodded. "Lily died protecting Harry…of course." He sighed wearily and pressed his lips against Harry's forehead, just to the right of the red mark. "I'll never be far," he promised Harry. He handed Harry over to Hagrid and then walked over to his bike, lifting it off the pavement. "Take my bike, Hagrid. I'm not going to need it anymore."

Hagrid gave Sirius an odd, concerned look. "Are you alrigh' there, Sirius?"

"I'm fine, there's just something I need to handle." He had been a fool about Peter and while he could never make it right retribution was required. He gave Harry one last longing look before spinning on the spot and disappearing.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Sirius spent the next twenty four hours searching for Peter, tirelessly, with no food or sleep, vengeance his only fuel. Sirius had never killed before but Pettigrew's life was now forfeit.

It seemed wherever he went he was just an hour or less behind Peter. It gave him hope of finding the filthy traitor because of how well he knew him.

As he turned the corner down a muggle populated street he saw the short, fat, blond man he had once called friend.

"I should have known when you elected to be a rat," spat Sirius, making Peter turn.

"N-n-now Sirius…j-j-just calm down," stuttered Peter.

"James and Lily are dead!" bellowed Sirius.

"Because of you!" accused Peter with genuine sorrow in his voice. "If you hadn't switched…you killed James and Lily! It was your idea!"

A crowd of muggles had gathered around the two men who were squared off and circling each other like dogs about to fight. The short, blond was nervously clutching a short, thick piece of wood while the other tall, dark haired man confidently twirled a longer piece of wood in his elegant, refined hands. The muggles murmured to each other about the curiosity of this, of why they seemed so focused on twigs.

Sirius saw the glimmer of the knife in Peter's hand as it reflected off of a streetlamp and laughed. "Going to cut me, Wormy?"

"It's not for you," said Peter darkly, who suddenly flicked his wand. Sirius countered with a flick of his own but missed. Peter's spell hit the pavement and with a tremendous explosion the street rent apart flinging pieces of asphalt and stone everywhere leaving a gaping crater in the middle of the street. There were screams and wailing all around them as muggles were hit with the flying debris. Sirius was flung ten feet back into the air, only getting control of his body in time to see Peter transform. Sirius shot a stunner at Peter but again missed and then the rat was gone, fleeing into the sewers.

It only took moments for the Aurors to arrive on the scene, shocked by the damage and mayhem all around them. More teams were called in by Patronus as they set about their work, repairing damage, healing those muggles that they could, casting Memory Charms and counting the bodies.

Their uniform robes gave them away as officials and a muggle ran up to them and pointed his finger at Sirius. "He did this, and the man he blew apart said he killed a James and Lily."

"Blew apart?" protested Sirius. "He did this not me!"

The Auror looked sharply at Sirius. "James and Lily Potter are dead, killed this very night. Didn't you know them fairly well?" The edge in his voice was heavy with suspicion.

Before Sirius could answer an Auror behind them shouted out, "We've got a finger!"

"You see," said the agitated muggle accusingly, "he killed that poor little man and all that's left is his finger!"

"That blond man was terribly frightened of him," said another muggle, pointing at Sirius.

Sirius ignored the muggle's accusations, talking loudly over them to the Auror, rebuking him for his suggestion. "Right!" he laughed mirthlessly. "Me? Kill James and Lily?"

"We'll at least have to take you in for questioning," replied the Auror. "According to Rubeus Hagrid you were there tonight, before anyone else. Were you the last to the see the Potter's alive?"

"No!" said Sirius heatedly. "That honor goes to Voldemort, the man who killed them!"

The Auror hissed at the name. "If You-Know-Who killed them then why were _you_ there?"

Before Sirius could answer another Auror walked up and whispered something that Sirius could just barely make out. "We've got thirteen dead muggles."

"Sorry, mate," said the Auror. "We've got to take you in."

A portly man, anxiously twirling a lime green bowler hat that Sirius recognized as being Cornelius Fudge, Undersecretary to the Minister of Magic came over to the pair eyeing Sirius nervously. "Are you Sirius Black?" Sirius nodded carefully. "You have been charged and found guilty for the murder of James and Lily Potter and sentenced to life in Azkaban."

The utter absurdity of the situation was more than Sirius could handle, he tipped his hat at life as being the ultimate prankster and threw back his head and let out a loud, unhappy laugh, a sound so out of place at the scene of such death and destruction. His bizarre reaction startled and stunned the Ministry officials who watched as the laughter just went on and on.

Still laughing, before the Ministry employees could move on him, Sirius Black began to twinkle and shimmer from head to toe. Apparently this surprised him as much as it did them and his laughter abruptly stopped.

"What the f-"

Before he could finish his thought, Sirius Black was gone.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

**A/N:** This story just won't shut up in my head so here goes…

There are 2 chapters left to Innocence which are in the works.


	2. Calamity

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of the characters, I just like to play with them**

Calamity

The company Shecklemeyer and Sons was the largest creative interest in the magical world. They put out more products for use by witches and wizards than any other in England. Despite its large size it was difficult to get a placement in the company because of how well they treated their employees. Once you were hired on at Shecklemeyer and Sons you would be a fool to leave before retirement.

The last office on the left was one of the smallest but it had the nicest view. Despite its size, getting placed in this office was a reward for hard work that was done well. The name plate on the door read 'Hermione Granger.' Inside the office it was fairly Spartan, only one or two pictures of herself, Ron and Harry and one of Harry and Ginny's wedding day graced her desk and of course one of her parents. Outside the office, the view overlooked the Thames and it was here that she gazed when looking for inspiration.

Hermione had been working for Shecklemeyer and Sons since they had gotten a hold of her NEWTs results. They had come to her looking for a new recruit in their Research and Development branch. From the day she set foot in the company she had been their rising star, the one to watch.

Her career with the company was not only intellectually stimulating, it was also quite lucrative, affording her a very comfortable lifestyle. The only drawback was that her personal life suffered, however, that was not the company's fault.

Ron and Hermione had made an honest go of it but it became obvious that close friendship wasn't necessarily a basis for true love. When he was honest he would admit that her greater salary was an issue for him as he had been raised in a traditional family where the wife stayed at home while the husband was the breadwinner. The fire in the bedroom was closer to lukewarm and finally, after about a year, they parted as friends. Since then, she had thrown herself into work, believing that she may not be cut out for long term relationships.

Hermione sat at her work space, wand in hand, pouring over a small, flat, rectangular slab of onyx. A grid of sterling silver squares adorned the glossy black surface of stone and into each were inlaid a cut square of rutilated agate. The feathery tendrils of gleaming grey inside the milky white stone were partially hidden by numbers made of gold, one through thirty one, a number for each square which was perfectly centered in the agate.

Over the grid, carved into granite and inlaid in the onyx was the word 'Month,' and next to that was the numeral '0000.' Next to those numbers were another set of numbers that read '00:00:00.' Hermione's tongue was poked out from inside of her mouth in an upward curve, a sure sign of intense concentration.

All around the calendar were a series of runes, inlaid in gold and at the very bottom of the calendar, within the frame of runes, was the word 'Name' inlaid in silver.

Next to the calendar sat a bar of pure gold with what appeared to be strips carved out of it. She was bent over a book, making notes on a piece of parchment and glancing occasionally at the calendar. Every so often she would flick her wand at the bar of gold and then at the calendar and another rune would appear in the glossy black. Finally, Hermione lifted her head, a satisfied smile on her face.

"There," she breathed, "all finished. Now let's see if it works." Tapping the letters that read 'Month' with her wand she changed it to read 'September' and the word 'name' to Hermione Granger'. She then changed the four zeros to '1991' and the set of zeros and colons to read '12:30:00.' Then she tapped the numeral '1' and suddenly her office took on the semblance of the Hogwarts express and the carriage she had been located in with Neville Longbottom.

The only part of her office that was easy to make out was her desk which the calendar was sat upon. Just as she hoped the calendar had recreated every detail down to Longbottom's lost frog Trevor, the sound of the train on the tracks and the witch pushing the trolley. She watched for a few minutes and had to smile at the bossy, bushy haired child she had been.

Hermione picked up a piece of parchment that was a copy of the official arrest record for Sirius Black and examined it carefully. This calendar had been commissioned by the Ministry to investigate charges of false arrest that had been filed against Cornelius Fudge by Harry Potter. Harry still grappled with the loss of Sirius and wanted to bring the responsible parties to justice.

Hermione tapped 'September' and changed it to 'November,' changed the year from '1991' to '1981' and then changed the name to 'Sirius Black.' She scanned the report for the time of the arrest and then set the hour to thirty minutes earlier then when Sirius was apprehended. She tapped the numeral '1' once again and then held her breath.

The scene from her first ride on the Hogwarts Express abruptly changed to a city street lined with muggles who were watching two wizards, a short, fat, watery eyed blond and a tall, wildly handsome raven haired…

Hermione took a step from around behind the desk, scarcely able to believe that this was Sirius. As they shouted at each other in the middle of the crowded street with muggle spectators playing witness to the fight of the century, she moved closer and closer to the dueling wizards.

None of this was actually happening, there was no harm that could befall her but she was still startled and let out a little yelp when the street was torn apart. She suppressed the urge to run to Sirius' side and help him to his feet and nearly drew her wand on Pettigrew herself.

Realizing that she didn't really want to see anymore for she knew this story and its bitter ending and so she flicked her wand at the calendar to stop it but the scene continued to play on. Frustrated, she walked back to her desk and tried to concentrate amid the sounds of wailing muggles and an outraged Sirius. Unable to make the disturbing images disappear she did finally pause the action sequence, thankfully before she had to watch Sirius' arrest. The sound of his miserable laughter had given her the beginning of a tremendous headache.

The current issue with the calendar was a minor glitch because it _did_ work, which would be good news to a certain bespectacled best friend of hers. Selecting a fresh piece of parchment she penned a quick note. She crossed the room, squinting her eyes to make out a perch upon which sat a sturdy looking owl. "Here, girl," she said, fixing the note to the owl. "Take this to Harry." The owl opened its great wings and soared out through the open window, into the dark sky, on its assigned task.

Hermione returned to her desk, fumbled about for her chair and then sat. She took out a new piece of parchment and began making notes on her creation, a report for her superiors. A few minutes into her work there was a soft knock on her office door.

Hermione looked up and smiled at the newly hired witch, only a couple of months on the job, who was holding a small bowl in her hands. She had just finished her education at Hogwarts in June and had received high enough marks on her NEWTs to give Hermione a run for her money.

"Good evening, Ms. Granger," greeted the young witch, not sure what to say about the frozen scene.

"Good evening, Miss Hardfoot, what can I do for you?" Hermione smiled genuinely for she really liked this young woman. Seeing her bewildered look Hermione laughed just a little at the predicament her office was in. "Gadget gone awry," explained Hermione.

Miss Hardfoot nodded and took a deep breath. "This is my first assignment and I was told you were the person to see about runes. I've almost got it worked out…" she trailed off hesitantly, glancing at her creation.

"I'd love to help," assured Hermione sweetly. "What does it do?"

"Well, it's designed to recover small lost items and it does work," she pointed at her earrings. "I lost these two years ago. The last place I remember seeing them was in my ears in the mirror. I put my hands around the bowl and thought about my earrings and then just like that," she snapped her fingers, "they were in my ear.

"So what's the problem?" asked Hermione.

"They were supposed to end up in the bowl," said Miss Hardfoot, her tone betrayed her frustration.

"I see, well, just put it on my desk and I'll – " A gangly young wizard in jeans and a buttoned up white lab coat slid into Hermione's office, catching himself on the door frame. In his hand was a phial of potion and in his shock at the scene inside the office, the potion slipped his grasp.

Distracted by the intrusion, Miss Hardfoot didn't notice that she had just placed her bowl on top of Hermione's calendar. Hermione was too busy scowling at the clumsy young wizard to notice anything but his efforts to reclaim the phial.

Every lurch forward served only to aid his inevitable fall to the floor as his arms and legs reached out wildly in all directions, trying, vainly, to catch his potion and right his balance. In once last attempt at capturing the small glass bottle, an arm reaching valiantly out in front of him, managing to instead bat it directly at Miss Hardfoot's bowl which was settled completely on Hermione's calendar, the edges of which covered the name 'Sirius Black.' The glass shattered violently against the bowl, spilling potion all over the it, the calendar and spraying the rest of Hermione's desk.

The calendar and bowl began emitting hard, sharp popping and groaning noises as the stone from the calendar and the metal from the bowl began to fuse, bubbling and boiling into each other. Instantly the scene inside the office flickered and then was gone. The runes slid freely over the warped, badly misshapen object that had replaced the two creations, finally settling into overlapping, mostly unreadable patterns.

Hermione turned bright red as the anger built quickly into rage. Months of work had gone into that calendar and now it was ruined, smoking and letting off sparks.

Suddenly the whole mess glowed brightly, twinkling and shimmering, then disappeared completely only to return, totally silent and still. No more smoke, no more sound, no more anything.

A sharp rap on the door pulled all three of them away from the mess on the desk. A tall, distinguished looking wizard, balding but still handsome, in well tailored robes stood in the doorway, his inquisitive smile drifting into a concerned frown.

He lent a hand to the gangly young wizard, helping him to his feet while keeping a wary eye on his star employee who was glowering. His gaze roamed from her to the chaos on her desk and took in a sharp breath of air.

"Hello, Mr. Shecklemeyer," said Hermione in a miserable tone.

"That's not?" he asked, his voice hushed with fear.

"I'm afraid it is," replied Hermione, wand twitching in her hand as she glared at the young wizard.

"I must contact the Ministry immediately. They were going to go public tomorrow. When I get back I want a full explanation for this... this…" He threw up his hands in defeat and spun on his heel.

Hermione fixed her gaze on the young wizard. "Mr. Hornbeam," she fumed, "exactly _what _did your potion do?"

Mr. Hornbeam swallowed and blinked a few times. "It, uh, it takes two or more magical artifacts and combines their abilities into one. For instance, I have in my office a combined Foe-glass and Sneakoscope. You get the warning while being able to see who you're enemy is."

"And did it turn into a pile of goo?" asked Hermione snidely.

"N-no," he answered. "It's actually quite useful and works too." He glanced at the warped metal and stone on her desk. "I don't know what happened here. Maybe the magical properties weren't compatible."

"You think?" snapped Miss Hardfoot, her temper finally breaking.

"Mr. Hornbeam, you are never to set foot in this office again. In fact, you are never to come within two feet of this office." Hermione came around from behind her desk, smacking her wand into her hand, emitting sparks from the end each time.

"Y-y-yes, ma'am," quailed Mr. Hornbeam nervously, eyes on the agitated wand. He stood stock still, afraid that any movement might set her off.

"Get out," said Hermione dangerously. Mr. Hornbeam couldn't leave fast enough for his liking. Three seconds after he left her office she heard a loud crash. Hermione flicked her wand at the door and shut it with a soft snap.

Hermione conjured a chair for Miss Hardfoot and returned to behind her desk. She indicated with her hand that Miss Hardfoot should sit. "Alright, tell me exactly how your bowl worked, something happened and I think we better figure out what."

"Well," began Miss Hardfoot. "It works off of the theory that multiple dimensions can occupy the same space." Hermione nodded. "Ok, so…you think about the last place you saw the object and then place your hands on the bowl. The object is pulled through dimensional space and time. The magic actually _creates_ the dimension and when the object is pulled out of it, the created dimension collapses. You have your object without leaving any trash behind, so to speak."

"So, when the object is pulled forward the created dimension collapses while in this dimension you have two sets of whatever the object was, right?" Hermione was very impressed with the young witch.

"Right! It would be unethical to leave countless 'waste' dimensions around. The company wants to mass produce this and the repercussions of cluttering the universe that way are unknown. The end result is that one dimensions has, say, two identical sets of earrings," she pointed at her ears. Miss Hardfoot gazed gloomily at the wrecked bowl, half of one side melted almost entirely into the calendar.

"And you say it worked, it just didn't bring the object to the bowl?" asked Hermione.

Miss Hardfoot nodded. "What did yours do?"

"Well, the Ministry wants to launch a full investigation into the unlawful imprisonment of Sirius Black," began Hermione.

"Ooh, I heard about that," cooed Miss Hardfoot. "I saw a photo of him in the Prophet, all cleaned up and wearing nice robes, a very handsome man, such a shame about his death."

Hermione smiled sadly. "He was a good man, flawed, but still a very good man. That's him just there, albeit much younger."

"Did you know him?" asked Miss Hardfoot, a little awed, turning to look at the angry and grief stricken image of Sirius Black.

"Yes, I did," answered Hermione. "He was my best friend's godfather. He meant the world to Harry. I was really hoping this would bring him some closure."

"So, what was your, calendar, was it?" Hermione nodded. "Yeah, what was it supposed to do?"

"The charges that were filed against Cornelius Fudge are pretty serious, it seems he acted on his own accord in circumventing the judicial process. There was actually quite a bit of that going on back then but so far none have been proven innocent the way that Sirius was.

"After Pettigrew was questioned under Veritaserum he confessed to everything. The Kiss was performed resulting in his death only a few minutes later." Hermione tapped her fingers in agitation on the bar of gold which sat on her desk next to the twisted and malformed disaster. "It was Pettigrew's account of that day that brought to light that Fudge was the Ministry official who arrested Sirius.

"There is no record of any warrant and it is known for a fact that no trial was ever held. Fudge denies arresting Sirius and claims and that it is just a matter of Pettigrew remembering it that way and none of the Aurors on duty that day can quite remember either. When Fudge was asked to produce his own memories for examination he refused filing document after document in an effort to stall the process. As it stands right now the Ministry will have its hands tied for years trying to sort out all the legal red tape."

"So then enter you and your calendar," supplied Miss Hardfoot.

"Precisely," agreed Hermione. "Fudge can refuse the Ministry his own memories but this calendar acts as a sort of Pensieve for the memories of a certain point in time."

"So, there were some similarities between the two devices, they both reach back in time," reasoned Miss Hardfoot. "How does the calendar know where to pull the memory from? You could end up watching a shepherd tend his flock in the Falklands."

"Oh, the calendar is enchanted to find a specific person and show what is happening to him or her…" Hermione trailed off. "And your device retrieves objects by creating duplicates of…" Hermione's eyes widened in shock. "Oh, Merlin…Miss Hardfoot, please tell Mr. Shecklemeyer I had to leave. I fear disastrous repercussions to Mr. Hornbeam's two left feet!" She grabbed her purse and dashed out the door leaving behind a bewildered Miss Hardfoot.

Hermione didn't wait for the lift down to the ground floor, opting instead to fly down the stairs as fast as her feet would carry her. Once out on the street, she looked around for muggles and then spun on the spot, disappearing with a sharp 'crack.'

Reappearing in the alley behind number twelve, Grimmauld Place, she raced around to the front and opened the old oak door. "REMUS!" she screamed. "REMUS!"

A door opened from a few floors up followed by the sound of feet tromping down the stairs. Disheveled and clutching their house robes, Remus and Tonks peered over the banister at her, Remus looking worried, Tonks annoyed.

"I'm sorry," wailed Hermione. "But it's urgent! Please Remus! We have to go to where Sirius was arrested!"

Adjusting his robe again and shifting his feet, Remus looked puzzled. "Why?"

"Hurry! I'll explain on the way!" Hermione jumped in place from all of the nervous energy she was trying to hold in. Trusting her to know what she was talking about, Remus turned on the spot and fled to his room.

"You're timing is lousy," commented Tonks dryly.

"I'm really sorry," pleaded Hermione. "It's just I can't do this alone, he doesn't know who I am."

"Who doesn't know who you are?" asked Tonks bewildered.

Hermione never answered her question because the next moment saw Remus hurriedly exiting his bedroom, kissing Tonks on the cheek with a quiet word in her ear and then he was sprinting down the stairs to Hermione. Tugging him by the wrist they exited the Black Manor, rounded the corner and turned onto the alley running behind the ancient house.

"You want to tell me why we're going to the place that Sirius was arrested?" asked Remus.

"No time," urged Hermione. "We'll see soon enough."

Holding her firmly by the hand Remus spun on the spot landing moments later in the middle of the street in a muggle neighborhood. In front of them, coughing and retching was a young man on his hands and needs, trying in vain to master his body.

"It can't be," whispered Remus. "It's impossible." He turned accusingly to Hermione. "How can this be?"

"Magical accident at Shecklemeyer and Sons," she answered simply.

"We have to send him back! The timeline!" he hissed desperately.

"The timeline will be unaffected," replied Hermione. "Now, come on, he needs our help."

"What do we do?" asked Remus.

"Why don't you try saying his name," offered Hermione.

"It's not as though I can't hear you," croaked Sirius from his position on the ground.

"Sirius?" asked Remus tentatively.

"Who wants to know?" asked Sirius belligerently.

"It's him," said Remus dryly with a wry grin.

Sirius pushed off the ground to rise up on his knees. It was the first moment that Hermione was able to get a good look at him and despite his ragged appearance from his trip and all that had just transpired for him, he was still unbelievably handsome. His hair fell carelessly forward into his eyes which were a tempestuous grey, full of passion and life. This was not the man she knew who had fallen haplessly through a mysterious archway or been shut up in his family's home. This was something altogether different.

Wiping his mouth on his sleeve he glared balefully at Remus and Hermione, wand raised and pointed at them. "Who the fuck are you?"

"Don't you recognize me, Padfoot?" he asked using his nickname from their Hogwarts days.

Sirius squinted at him, wand still raised. "No."

"You're a bit older," offered Hermione.

"It's me, Moony," explained Remus.

"Bullshit! This is some Death Eater trick. If you're Moony, prove it." Sirius was focused on Remus but he let his eyes drift over to Hermione a few times.

"The night before the Christmas hols in our fifth year I caught you snogging Lily in the Astronomy Tower." Hermione took in a shocked breath of air.

"Lily," said Sirius, choking back a sob. "Oh, god and James…" Against his will his eyes leaked tears in angered grief. Sirius took in a long, sharp breath of air through his nose to steady himself. Slowly, he lowered his wand, studying Remus' face. He shook his head. "I don't believe you," he said harshly, but there was a trace of doubt in his voice. "You look like you could be Moony's dad but I saw Moony just the other day and believe me he could not have aged that much in less than a week."

"Well, you're as tactful as ever," remarked Remus lightly. "Would you like me to continue to mention embarrassing moments from your youth? There was a particular incident in the prefect bathroom that I happened to walk in on."

Sirius' eyes widened in shock. "You swore…"

"And I've kept my vow," interrupted Remus.

"This is just too…too much…" said Sirius trailing off. "I was right here, not ten minutes ago about to get arrested for the…the…" He had to take a breath to ground himself before he could say the words. "The m-murder of J-James and Lily." He looked around for the first time, noting the changes warily, seeming to expect Ministry officials to jump out of nowhere. "What happened?"

"Ask her," replied Remus.

Sirius' gaze fell on Hermione. "And who might you be, beautiful?"

"Oh…oh…Hermione Granger is…me," said Hermione awkwardly, turning a little red with embarrassment.

A slow grin spread across Sirius' face which had a tremendous affect on him. When glowering and angry he could be just as frightening as the Sirius she knew but 'her' Sirius had never looked so…so…

Mesmerized, Hermione didn't pay attention to the fact that Sirius was addressing her.

"You in there, love?" said Sirius. "Nudge her, mate." Remus pushed against Hermione's shoulder.

The light shove startled her. "What?" she growled, embarrassed at having been caught gawking at Sirius. Instead of letting her off easy, allowing her to keep her dignity, Sirius used it torment her, just a little.

"Well, if you're all done sexing me with your eyes do you mind telling me what happened?" Sirius recognized prey when he saw it and for the moment she definitely looked like prey.

The word 'sexing' seemed to bounce around in her head, severing her brain from her vocal chords. She made a few small gasping sounds as her mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water. If possible, Sirius' grin grew wider. He was all teeth, gleaming in the streetlamp light, pleased, that after the night he'd had, he still got a tiny patch of fun.

"While we're young, miss," urged Sirius. "Except for you, of course, Moony. Too late for that." He was doing his best authoritative mockup for her, which was a sham at best but when her blush actually went deeper he released a low chuckle.

"Stop that!" demanded Hermione. "This isn't easy on any of us."

"Well, arguably it's a lot easier on you that it is on me, so please, let's just have it." The act of impatience and irritation sold well to Hermione but not to Remus.

"Go easy on her, mate," requested Remus, sounding very tired.

"Go easy on her?" asked Sirius was false incredulity. "She's the one bringing strange men into who knows where for who knows what."

"It was an accident!" she shrieked, her voice shrill as her temper broke. "And it wasn't my fault! It was a combination of things with absolutely _stellar_ timing. I didn't mean to bring you here! Now if you've quite decided that we aren't Death Eaters and that this isn't some elaborate plot to seduce you, I suggest we head home and try to sort this out." No sooner had the last word left her mouth then she Disapparated with a sharp 'crack.'

"Seduce?" said Sirius while breathing a laugh.

"She's not the easy mark you're making her out to be, old friend. You've caught her off guard but once she has her bearings back you'd really rather have her as a friend." Remus gave Sirius a look to let him know he was not fooled.

"What did I do?" asked Sirius, all innocence. "You know after the day I've had you should be thankful I've kept my sense of humor."

Remus chose not to reply, opting to simply offer Sirius his hand to help him to his feet. No sooner had Sirius stood to his full height, he immediately doubled over in pain, emptying the contents of his stomach, which, since he hadn't eaten in about twenty four hours consisted mostly of acid and bile. He spit and then wiped his mouth on his sleeve again, coughing because of the acid burn in his throat.

"You alright, mate?" asked Remus concerned. Sirius just waved him off, taking a step away. He leaned against the streetlamp for support.

"I'm fine," he rasped against his sore throat, as tiny beads of sweat dotted his brow.

"You look sort of clammy. Do you think you can side along? I'll feel a lot better once we get you inside." Remus took a cautious step toward Sirius until the raven haired man nodded his head. He put a firm hand on Sirius' wrist and then spun on the spot, taking the sickly time traveler to the one place he hated like no other.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

**A/N:** Thank you for the reviews!

Please review!


	3. Reality

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of the characters, I just like to play with them**

Reality

When Remus arrived at number twelve, Grimmauld Place with Sirius, who had recovered for the moment but was still looking a little green, he found that Hermione was still in a foul temper. She was making a cup of tea for herself and every movement had an edge of violence to it. The cabinet doors banged open, releasing a cup and saucer that slammed onto the old oak table, the kettle practically screamed in pain when she flicked her wand at it to boil the water.

Sirius was moving under his own power and slouched into the kitchen, throwing himself into a chair and then folded the upper half of his body onto the table, groaning in discontent.

"What's his problem?" asked Hermione with no sympathy.

"Nausea," answered Remus. "He got pretty sick after you left."

"Hard to know what to expect with this," said Hermione thoughtfully. "When I used the Time Turner in my third year each jump back came with a sort of buzz in my head. I imagine there will be some side affects for a few days."

"Wonderful," came a deep voice from the kitchen table, followed by a miserable groan, Sirius turned his head without taking it off the tabletop to look at Remus and Hermione. She was looking at him with a small frown, still irritated, but turned away when Sirius caught her eye. "You're not still mad, are you?"

"As a matter of fact…" she started to say but he interrupted her.

"You need to develop a sense of humor," he observed.

"I happen to have a wonderful sense of humor," she defended with a small huff. "It just doesn't extend to men making lewd comments about me."

Sirius lifted his head and narrowed his eyes at her, taking her in more closely. He couldn't deny that she was pretty, beautiful in fact, but it was apparent that she didn't place much value in it. Wearing her hair in a bun that had once been tight and matronly but was now softened and falling apart gave her the appearance of a frazzled librarian.

Completing the look was her lack of make up, not that she really needed any though, and the button down blouse she wore with only one button undone from the top, soft woolen slacks that were not designed to accentuate her figure and very sensible shoes.

'_Awfully young for a spinster,' _he thought.

Deciding that perhaps Remus was right, that maybe he shouldn't have been so quick to tease her despite her clear attraction, ogling him in fact, Sirius made an apology of sorts.

"I was just joking around, I didn't mean to get your knickers in a bunch," he turned his head the other way and groaned again.

"My knickers aren't bunched," she said, her temper starting to rise again.

"Fine, your knickers aren't bunched but you have to admit you were drooling just a bit," he kept his head turned away to cover the small grin.

"Padfoot," said Remus wearily before Hermione could say something to escalate matters. "Shut up." Sirius shrugged his shoulder as if it didn't matter to him either way and didn't notice when she left the room to compose herself.

"The _nerve_ of him," she hissed under breath, pacing in the drawing room. "Arrogant, egotistical…certainly thinks a lot of himself…I was _not drooling…" _Hermione released a short angry breath. It took her about ten minutes to get her temper under control so she could return to the kitchen. Sirius didn't seem to have gotten much better while she was pulling herself together.

He was still sat at the old, oak table, still nauseous from being wrenched forward through time and shaken from all that had happened over the course of two horrifyingly eventful days. Periodically he would look up at Remus, desperate to take it all in, to somehow make sense of what had transpired.

Mercifully Hermione and Remus were quiet, allowing him time to adjust in his own way before shocking him further with the realities of the situation. Suddenly he leapt to his feet, knocking his chair over on its side as he raced to the sink where he retched and spit.

Hermione got up from the kitchen table and quickly bolted up the stairs to the hallway bathroom where the medicinal potions were kept. Rummaging around in the potions cabinet until she found what she was after, a nausea antidote, and then returned to the kitchen.

Sirius splashed his face with cool water and rinsed his mouth out, thinking his moment of sickness had passed. Hermione tried to hand him the potion but he shook his head. "Nah, I'm in great shape, beautiful." He tried to stand up straight, dwarfing her for just a moment but his stomach lurched again, forcing out the rest of its contents, which was mostly bile, as he coughed and groaned, leaning heavily on the sink for support.

Hermione wasn't prepared for him to call her beautiful, again, particularly not between bouts of nausea. At its best it was inappropriately presumptuous, at its worst it was arrogance and entitlement, as if he had the right to speak to her in that manner, for no other reason than he was Sirius Black. The casual way the words had rolled off of his tongue suggested that he didn't mean any of it and that sort of egotism grated on her nerves

Smirking just a little, _'serves him right,' _she left the potion on the counter to allow him to make up his own mind without any pressure from her. She looked over at Remus as she sat back down to gauge his reaction and caught him gazing at Sirius in an exasperated, bemused sort of way but there was something else too. Remus was visibly tense, holding his body taut across the shoulders. He seemed wary, waiting for something, uncertain.

Sirius conjured a towel to wipe his face as he eased back into an upright position, vanishing it when he was done and then downed the potion with a grimace. Walking a few steps over he rested his hand on the table for support as he lowered his body to pick up the chair he had knocked over, sat heavily into it and then leaned back, balancing on its back legs. "So, you're not Death Eaters, no one is trying to _seduce_ me," his lips quirked up at the edges in a jagged smile, "we're in this horrid house, headquarters for the Order, the irony of which I could appreciate if my circumstances weren't so thoroughly fucked. Would someone please tell what in the name of Merlin's saggy Y-fronts is going on?"

One thing there was no denying was that this younger version of Sirius possessed a sort of charisma that the older Sirius she knew had been robbed of. Well, robbed was probably the wrong word but he certainly didn't possess it in the quantities that this one did. He exuded a sort of energy that she had read some people commanded but had never experienced first hand.

Not that she didn't find him frightfully irritating.

Remus was still tense, like he was waiting for something and it made her a little nervous. If memory served the older Sirius could be unpredictable, something that was often alluded to by the other adults at the time. She had gotten the impression that he was always on the tip of doing something rash, ready to push the limits of a situation at the first opportunity. Perhaps this is what had set Remus' teeth on edge.

Taking a deep breath, Hermione began to try and explain the accident that had led to this impossible situation, although in the back of her mind a voice reminded her that when it came to magic, impossible required a new definition.

"Well, we should probably explain a few events before we get to the actual details of what happened because there is a bit of history that led up to the reason for a portion of the accident." Hermione looked to Remus to help her explain things.

"You said that you were about to be arrested," started Remus, "and in fact you were." Hermione noticed that he seemed to be choosing how to explain things very carefully. "Once your name was officially cleared James and Lily's son Harry opened an investigation as to why you had been falsely arrested."

_Ah, so we're not going to mention that he died._

"Harry?" Sirius' attention shifted instantly. "Where is Harry? How is he?"

"I've owled him," she said tersely. "He'll be by later. This is going to be a real shock," she paused, "and a big disappointment." Her hand flew to her mouth, unable to believe she'd just said that.

"You're a bit of shrew," teased Sirius in a light tone, taking her bait but not too seriously.

"Would you two please try and focus," begged Remus. "There is so much to consider and things that need to be worked out."

"I'm just having a little fun, trying to make the best of my situation. Pretty birds were always a weakness and then you make them prudish to bo-" Sirius praised himself inwardly when she rose to her feet in an angry huff.

"How dare you?" With the blood in her face glowing brightly and eyes blazing Sirius was certain he'd never seen anything prettier…or more fun.

"I had forgotten what a ridiculous arse you were at times," said Remus with a laugh in his voice as he fingered the note from Tonks. She would be disappointed that she wasn't here for this.

"What?" Sirius turned his head suddenly enough to force a few cracks in his neck joints and looked at his friend in shock. "Look, _dad_," he sneered mockingly, "my whole life just got turned upside down and so far I've gotten no answers and hardly know what questions to ask."

Remus just continued to laugh and shake his head at Sirius. "I see it doesn't stop you from running off at the mouth. Now you owe her an apology."

"Her? What about the apology she owes me?" he said, indignant. "Big disappointment indeed."

"Padfoot!" said Remus with a dangerous edge to his voice.

Sirius rolled his eyes. "Sorry, love," muttered Sirius, not sounding very sorry at all.

"I'm not your 'love,' Sirius," she growled.

Sirius' lips quirked mischievously. "My mistake, pet."

"Hermione, Sirius," she gritted. "Just Hermione." Sirius just put his hands up in mock defeat and didn't goad her any further.

As infuriating as he was it was difficult not to be impressed by a man who could suffer through what he had just experienced in the last couple of days and still maintain a sense of playfulness, no matter how inappropriate it might seem to her.

"Hermione?" said Remus.

"What?"

"Big disappointment?" said Remus with an eyebrow raised.

She looked at Remus like he was a traitorous dog. After all he had said to her, she was supposed to apologize? To _him_? Remus simply held her gaze with pointed expectation of her compliance.

"Fine," she finally huffed. "Sorry, Sirius."

Sirius grinned widely and leaned back in his chair, well pleased with her submission. "Alright," he said expansively. "I am going to go out on a limb and guess that it is not 1981, so what year is it?"

"You might want all four legs on the floor for that one," said Hermione in a sardonic tone.

"Alright, beautiful_,_" said Sirius, appreciating the scowl she threw at him for his effort. "Thanks for the tip." He let the front legs of the chair fall to the floor with a loud bang, making Hermione jump in her seat. This young woman was something new in his experience and found he was fighting a losing battle at not trying to get under her skin. He couldn't seem to help himself.

"2003," said Remus, smirking at Sirius and his too shocked expression, robbing him of enjoying Hermione's reaction.

"Well…well…" Sirius was at a loss for words. "Fuck!"

"Language," said Hermione primly.

"Well, I don't know what else you say in a situation like this," retorted Sirius heatedly. "How do I get back?"

"You don't want to go back," said Hermione quietly, not looking forward to explaining just how bad his life had gotten. "And you don't need to because the – "

"Not go back? I know enough about meddling with time to understand that my absence in the timeline will have repercussions. Harry needs me around because if Petunia is half as bad as Lily made her out to be then I want to maintain a presence in his life. Plus I have to clear my name, I won't be known as the man who brought about the death of James and Lily Potter." Sirius was impassioned and intense, strikingly handsome as his face lit up with the power of his conviction. She was glad for her irritation to remind her he was a prat.

"Your name was cleared," said Remus helpfully.

"Posthumously," finished Hermione, ignoring Remus' glare.

"Post - you mean I'm _dead_?" All of the blood drained out of his face.

"Yes," said Remus, with evident sadness. "But you died the way you always said you wanted to."

"Blaze of glory?" asked Sirius, his face lighting up. Hermione gave Remus a look to question his honesty which he patently ignored.

"Fighting Bellatrix," confirmed Remus.

"Evil bitch," said Sirius happily.

Hermione narrowed her eyes to slits as she peered at Sirius with a touch of distaste. "In the Department of Mysteries there is an archway and it is believed that it is a portal to the other side of life. Bellatrix' spell knocked you into the archway."

"Oooo," cooed Sirius. "A mysterious death. How sexy is that?"

"Is he joking?" asked Hermione of Remus.

Remus cocked his head thoughtfully at Sirius and nodded his head. "Partially, but if he had to die he would rather do it with notoriety."

"So, back to me getting back, does anyone have access to a Time Turner?" Sirius was not to be deterred.

"The thing is," began Hermione, "you _can't_ go back because you are already there."

"No…" he said evenly, as though she were a little slow. "I'm right here."

"Yeah, I don't understand that either," said Remus.

"I'm trying to explain," she said patiently, going back to where Remus had left off. "Your name was cleared, as it turns out your arrest was illegal. There was no warrant, for goodness sake there wasn't even a trial. The only paper trail the Ministry has on file is the record of your arrest and the paperwork from Azkaban. Azkaban should never have accepted you as an inmate because the Ministry official who arrested you didn't sign it."

"No trial?" said Sirius disbelieving. "Why the fuck didn't the Order speak up for me?"

"As far as everyone knew, Sirius, you were the Potter's Secret Keeper," said Remus. Hermione heard the shame in his voice and wanted to hug him. "We all believed you were guilty."

"IT WAS JAMES AND LILY!" roared Sirius. "You had to know, Remus, that I would _never_ betray _James and Lily_."

Remus had nothing to say for himself, he just stared at his hands and kept quiet, ready for the storm.

"Oh, you've got to be fucking kidding me," said Sirius and he suddenly stood up to pace about the room.

"It's not as though you didn't suspect me too, Sirius," said Remus calmly.

Sirius stopped in his pacing for a moment and let out a breath of air slowly. "Well, at least I had a basis for my suspicion, Remus. Voldemort was offering werewolves more rights at the very same time that the Ministry was trying to take more of them away and _there was a spy_. We all knew it."

"You think that makes it all ok?" asked Remus. "You're just as guilty of suspecting a friend as I was."

"Well, what did you say when you came and talked to me, Remus? Because I know for damn sure I denied my guilt. What did you say when I told you it was Peter all along?" Sirius conjured a glass and a bottle of firewhiskey and poured himself a drink. He looked at Remus, waiting for the answer but Remus was back to staring at his hands again. Suddenly a glass shattered against the stone wall in the underground kitchen making Hermione jump in her seat. "You didn't even come and talk to me?" shouted Sirius.

He was back to pacing, so angry that he didn't trust himself to speak.

He reminded her of a caged animal, muttering darkly under his breath and throwing Remus angry glances, she felt helpless to aid the situation. When he finally spoke there was a dangerous calm to his voice.

"James and I accepted you from the beginning, never shunned you, never gave a _damn_ that you were a werewolf and this is how you repay our, _my_ friendship. Four years, Remus, James and I worked our arses off so that you wouldn't have to be alone when you transformed. For fucks sake, Remus, it was always me and James…how could you…" He threw himself back into the chair and buried his head in his hands for a moment before looking back up. "So, tossed in a cage, no one gives a fuck, then what?"

"Well," said Hermione, more timidly then she would have liked because he was a bit scary when he was angry. "Harry wanted to know who was at fault, how this had happened to you."

"Glad someone gave a damn," muttered Sirius.

"When Pettigrew was captured…" Sirius interrupted Hermione.

"Where is he now?" he growled.

"He's dead now, Sirius," she answered.

"Go on," he said, slightly mollified.

"Well, he was forced to give over the details of your arrest with Veritaserum," she continued.

"Wait a minute," interrupted Sirius. "Peter was long gone by the time that Fudge came to arrest me."

"So it _was_ Fudge," said Hermione thoughtfully. "That bastard."

"Language," said Sirius teasingly but gently this time, his edge somewhat softened.

"Sorry," she muttered, embarrassed with a red tinge to her cheeks. "Peter watched your arrest from the sewers, his confession was strange, he seemed to be angry at you somehow but also felt tremendous guilt over your incarceration."

"He blamed me for James and Lily's death," said Sirius quietly. "I imagine he didn't refuse to become Secret Keeper because, well, he never said no to either of us. I convinced James, we convinced Peter. But then what was he supposed to say, 'please don't do this because I'm the spy and really don't want my friends to die?'" Sirius let out heavy, ragged sigh, thick with emotion that he didn't want to deal with right now. "Finish your story," he requested.

"Oh, right," said Hermione, terribly confused because for just a moment he wasn't a prat, he was sincere and honest and completely vulnerable, his emotions freely visible on his face. His ability to be completely annoying one minute and then genuine and open the next perplexed her. "Well, Fudge maintains that he wasn't the one to arrest you, that Pettigrew remembered it wrong or couldn't see things clearly from the sewer. The Ministry has requested Fudge's memories but he has used legal channels to stall and as it stands right now it will be years before he gives them over, if ever."

"Alright, but what does that have to do with why I'm sitting here, _now_?" asked Sirius.

"I work for a company that develops products for the wizarding community, Shecklemeyer and Sons, and the…" Sirius interrupted her again.

"Wow! They've been around forever. They're really hard to get on with, good for you," he said in complimentary tones, flashing a winning smile.

Hermione momentarily lost her train of thought, her thoughts, strangely enough, on Sirius' lips. For one brief moment she wondered what it would be like to kiss him.

"Hermione? Hermione?" Sirius conjured a paper airplane and flew it across the table to her and let it bump her face. Hermione blushed furiously, swatting the airplane away. The minute her hand touched the paper it turned into a note.

_Talk now, fantasize about me later._

Hermione remembered why she didn't like Sirius.

"Very funny, Black," she said, crumpling the note and throwing it back at Sirius with a scowl. He just grinned widely at being able to irritate her so easily. Something about her brought out the worst in him.

"So, _Granger,_" said Sirius mockingly. "You work for Shecklemeyer and Sons, how is that relevant?

"I'm in the R and D department and the project I've been working on for the last four months is a calendar that works like a Pensieve for a certain point in time. The Ministry commissioned it so that the events of the day you were arrested could be viewed although the way I designed it you could pick any point in time. The rights to the calendar will stay with the company so that we could market it if we wanted to," she explained.

"And so the calendar pulled him forward in time?" asked Remus confused.

"No, well, not exactly. I do a lot of work with runes, it's sort of my area of expertise and one of our newer associates was working on her first project which used runes in its design. She was having problems getting it to work properly and came to me for advice," she continued.

"What did her project do?" asked Sirius.

It's really quite clever," said Hermione. "It retrieves lost objects by creating an identical parallel dimension."

"A what?" said Remus and Sirius in unison.

"Well, it's mostly theoretical of course, but it's the idea that another version of reality can lie alongside this version, occupying the same space. To give you an example there could be a dimension where Voldemort never rose to power and another where Harry lost," explained Hermione.

"Wow," said Sirius.

"Incredible," exclaimed Remus.

"Oh, I agree," said Hermione, nodding her head. "I've never seen the practical application of it before. What her project did was create a…"

"Create?" interjected Remus. "Isn't that, I don't know, a little unethical if you're just trying to recover a lost object?"

"Let me finish," requested Hermione. "So, an identical, parallel dimension is opened, the item is pulled through time and space and then the dimension is collapsed."

"How do you know the dimension is collapsed?" asked Remus.

"Because it's not designed to be a fully self sustaining entity," answered Hermione. "At least that is how I think it works. My associate explained that since the company wants to mass market this item one of the requirements was that it didn't leave around a lot of dimensional trash. Just guessing off the top of my head I would say that the dimension was only opened enough to find and retrieve the object. Having something removed from it in the process of being opened would create an instability that would guarantee its collapse. That's just a guess of course but I'll find out more tomorrow at work."

"What about the item that was lost in this dimension?" asked Remus.

Hermione shrugged her shoulders. "Still lost I imagine."

"I'm still not clear how I got here," said Sirius.

"Right," said Hermione, taking a deep breath. "So, we have two projects that don't work exactly right."

Sirius interrupted. "What do you mean?"

"I was testing the calendar and couldn't shut it down, all I could manage was to pause it at the scene just before you were arrested, that moment was stuck in my office," said Hermione.

"That's when it happened," said Sirius. "They were about to arrest me and then there was something strange, I started to…I don't know, phase out. You know it certainly didn't seem like I was in an incomplete dimension."

"Well, no," said Hermione. "I imagine it wouldn't since it was duplicated from a dimension that was complete. Up until the point of duplication you were in this dimension. The point when you were phased out was the beginning of the alternate dimension. Once you disappeared it collapsed."

"So…I am…me?" asked Sirius uncertainly.

"Yes," answered Hermione. "You are you, but in this dimension there are now two of you. One just happens to be dead."

"I still don't understand how he got here," said Remus.

"Ok," said Hermione. "My project, the calendar, was stuck at the point just prior to Sirius' arrest. Her project was this little metal bowl that the retrieved objects were supposed to end up in, the problem was that they ended up at the last place they were seen."

Remus nodded his head, beginning to see the correlation. "But how did they work together?"

Hermione's face darkened slightly. "We have a brilliant young Potions Master but he is notoriously clumsy, doesn't get out of his cauldron enough to learn how to walk properly. He came out of his lab to show me his new potion, he's always trying to impress me for some reason."

Sirius and Remus shared a knowing look that Hermione missed.

"Anyway," she continued. "He comes into my office and is startled by the scene it's stuck in and loses control of his potion. In his efforts to reclaim it he manages to break it against the recovery bowl which was sitting on top of my calendar."

"What did the potion do?" asked Sirius.

"It combines the magical abilities of two or more artifacts," she replied.

"Oh," said Remus and Sirius together.

"Now we just have to figure out what to do with you," said Hermione resignedly.

"I can think of a few things you could do with me," said Sirius cheekily.

"Sirius," said Remus warningly.

"Why do you insist on pushing my buttons?" asked Hermione. "I just don't understand you at all. I know that this mistake is partly my fault but I'm trying to help you."

"I like buttons," he admitted ruefully. "And you've got some fun reactions." He immediately put his hands up in surrender at her glare. He took a heavy breath and let it out. "I'm sorry. You have to admit though, you do get all dreamy around me."

"You really think a lot of yourself don't you?" she accused.

"I'm just honest," he returned, laughing lightly at her glare.

Hermione didn't say anything for several long minutes, hoping to discomfort him. "We never liked each other, you and I. I suppose there is no point in us trying to be friends."

"Ok," he answered. "I've never had girls as friends, outside of…" He didn't finish his thought as the picture of Lily's sightless eyes drifted through his mind.

Hermione suddenly remembered of which Sirius' last couple of days had consisted, it was too horrible to contemplate. The date on the calendar had been more than the day that Sirius was arrested, it was the day after Lily and James died. "Oh, god," she whispered.

Sirius took a deep breath forcing his emotion down because that was something he would deal with later, when he was alone. "Don't," he pleaded. "Don't make me think about it."

"You were always a bit arrogant," she offered helpfully, looking away from him but the corners of her mouth were twitching upwards.

"Better," he breathed. "Thank you."

"But I never considered what that would look like when played out in obscene proportions," she finished.

"Maybe, but you blushed, my dear, which says something," he countered.

"Can't you let it rest?" tried Remus, but they really weren't listening to him.

"You don't know a witch accuse her of…" she took a deep breath, "fantasizing about you and then say the fault for the blush is hers?" Hermione was astounded by him, liking him less and less by the minute.

"When did he accuse you of that?" asked Remus, who hadn't read the paper airplane note. They both ignored him and continued on with their little war.

"Would she have blushed if it weren't true?" he asked with a knowing grin.

"You're absolutely rotten to your core, are you aware of that?" she fumed, irritated that he was right and lacked the decency to keep it to himself.

"Only someone as self assured as me could pull that off," he said with a winning smile.

"You're unstoppable," she said in sheer amazement that an ego that size could fit in a room so small.

"Yes," he said smoothly. "I have heard that before." His voice was laced profoundly in innuendo.

"Enough!" she said, frustrated. "If we're not going to be friends then why are you still bothering me?"

"I was trying to apologize," he began. "In the future I will try not to point out the obvious."

"The obvious?" she said hotly. "You know I feel sorry for Harry, you are nothing like the man he called godfather."

"How is he?" asked Sirius lightly, changing the tone of the conversation. "If he's anything like his father, there'll be some cute witch driving him mad."

"Well, he's rather fond of his wife," said Hermione dryly. Just then they heard the front door open and close and voices talking in the hallway. Sirius looked at her with a particular question in his heart. Hermione nodded to him and then reached across the table and took one of his hands in hers, shocking him, her soft hands having a wholly unexpected reaction in him. It felt natural and right in a way that it shouldn't have. If she was having a similar reaction she certainly didn't show it.

"He looks a lot like James, Sirius," she said compassionately, despite her obvious dislike for him.

'_Ah…'_ he thought. _'Just softening the blow.'_

Sirius took a deep, leaden breath, still looking at his hand in hers. "Thanks for the warning."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

**A/N:** Thank you for the reviews! So far I've gotten a wonderful response to this story! It is much appreciated!

I'm sorry I've been so lousy about replying to reviews lately. RL is only giving me enough time to write and really, barely enough time for that.

Sirius died when he was supposed to at the end of book 5. That is of course explained in more detail in this chapter.

I've never read a story where Hermione starts off irritated and yet attracted to Sirius (much to her consternation). Writing them at odds to each other is a lot of fun!


	4. Reunite

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of the characters, I just like to play with them**

Reunite

Sneaking icy fingers into their warm winter robes, the chill of a November night in London invaded Harry and Ginny as they took to the steps leading up to the house only a chosen few could see. They were responding to a letter from Hermione that contained an urgent message about a matter which required their immediate attention without a single clue about the emergency itself.

While they loved living together with friends that were closer than family, occasionally newlyweds needed time away to be alone together and that is what this week had been about. Whatever had happened must be truly catastrophic for Hermione to pull them out of the Cotswolds.

Sharing a last ominous look before flicking his wand at the door, Harry and Ginny returned home prepared for the worst. Once they were through the door Harry knew that something was different, the voices they had just heard floating up from the kitchen quieted altogether. Before they even had a chance to remove their warm outer robes Remus rushed down the hall, looking harried, like he'd had an awful night, greeting them nervously.

"Thanks for coming so quickly," he said as he escorted them down the stairs.

"Remus," began Harry slowly. "What's going on?"

"You know that calendar Hermione was working on, the one for the Ministry?" asked Remus as he brushed his hair out of his eyes.

"For the charges I filed against Fudge. The wrongful imprisonment suit?" asked Harry, his green eyes puzzled.

"The same," replied Remus as they approached the kitchen doorway. "Well, there was an accident which had a rather astonishing side affect."

Hearing the voices down the hall, Sirius' hands began to tremble. He hadn't had a moment of peace to think about the awful events or the surreal quality his life had taken on and now he was about to meet the adult version of a baby he had held in his arms two nights ago, who apparently resembled his dead best friend. Feeling his limit approaching Sirius anxiously stood up and walked around behind Hermione, trying to shake off an overdue breakdown.

Remus looked up to see Hermione standing in the doorway to the kitchen as they approached.

"I want you to prepare yourself for a shock, Harry," said Hermione, smiling softly at Harry and Ginny.

"Don't forget big disappointment," murmured Sirius in her ear, too quietly for anyone else to hear. Focusing on her discomfort had worked well for him so far and he was in desperate need of a distraction.

Hermione pushed him back into the kitchen, her hand catching his broad, muscular chest, snatching it back the second she realized she was impressed. She took a step towards Harry and put her hand up for him to stop. "It's Sirius, Harry."

"What's serious? How serious is it?" asked Harry, caught unaware.

"No, no," said Hermione with a small laugh. "It's your godfather, Sirius."

"What do you mean?" asked Harry nervously and then his tone flattened. "Sirius is dead, Hermione."

"I know he is and this _is_ a little confusing but…why don't you come on in and meet him." She turned in the doorway and gestured that he and Ginny should follow.

Harry took a few steps forward and caught sight of what had to be a ghost standing behind Hermione's shoulder. "Sirius?" he whispered.

"He's not the Sirius you knew," explained Hermione. "He's much younger."

Looking around the doorframe, Sirius caught sight of Harry and it nearly knocked the wind out of him. He remembered closing James' eyes and had to blink his own to force back the tears that were threatening to overwhelm.

Harry pushed gently past Hermione and entered the kitchen, unable to take his eyes off of Sirius. The face was undeniably that of his godfather, handsome but without all the lines and hollows in 'his' Sirius' face. His hair was shorter than he ever remembered seeing Sirius wear it, the front falling carelessly into his face. As if he knew that his hair was being scrutinized he brought his hand up to run through it, sweeping it back.

Just as Harry was taking in Sirius, Sirius was doing the same with Harry. Before him stood the reincarnation of his dead best friend, forcibly shoving his last memory of James into his thoughts. Sirius drew a shaky breath, struggling to maintain his composure. It was Ginny, however, as she stepped into the room and took a hold of Harry's hand, that ruined him, with her red hair and big smile, looking so right standing next to Harry, looking so similar to James and Lily. Falling against the wall for support, Sirius slid down, unable to hold himself up.

Harry was by his side in an instant, kneeling down beside him with anxious eyes, Lily's eyes. "Sirius?"

"Harry," rasped Sirius, attempting to hold off an emotional moment. "You look just like James." Reality settled into Sirius like a cancer, corrupting everything in him with its icy touch.

"Can you get to your feet?" asked Harry. When Sirius didn't even try he looked up at Hermione. "Do we have a Calming Draught somewhere in this house?" She nodded her head and disappeared around the corner. Taking in Sirius' age and emotional state Harry made a shrewd deduction. "They just died a few days ago didn't they, for you I mean?"

Sirius just nodded his head, not trusting himself to speak for fear of losing the tenuous grasp he had on his sanity. Harry swept his eyes hungrily over Sirius' face, wanting him to be the godfather he knew but he wasn't, not really. In some ways it was better, getting the chance to know a Sirius who wasn't so utterly thrashed by life. In others it wasn't, there was a depth to 'his' Sirius that he could feel this one lacked, not enough had happened to him yet.

"You look exhausted," said Harry, noting that Sirius looked incredibly tired. Smiling at Harry for noticing he nodded his head after which his stomach let out a tremendous growl. Harry chuckled lightly and they shared another smile. Before he would help Sirius to his feet he said to him in an undertone, "Peter's dead, I watched him die."

"She told me," said Sirius, trusting his voice to say that.

When Hermione came back in with a small brown bottle containing a single dose of the Calming Draught, which she handed to Sirius, Harry asked her if she would mind making sandwiches for everyone. Sirius took his potion and then Harry helped him to his feet and over to the table.

"Sirius, I'd like to introduce you to my wife Ginevra Weasley Potter," said Harry, ushering his wife forward with a hand at her back. Sirius chivalrously took a hold of Ginny's hand kissed it.

"Lovely to meet you, Ginny," he charmed. "You keep this guy in line?" Teasing, joking and clinging to lightheartedness was his best bet at keeping it together.

"It's a full time job," said Ginny with a bright smile. Harry pulled a chair out for her and helped her into it.

"Can someone explain to me what is going on?" asked Harry, trying not to stare at Sirius.

"Beautiful? Care to explain?" said Sirius, the calming effect of the potion allowing him focus away from himself once again. His words earned curious looks around the room to see whom Sirius meant.

Hermione wanted desperately to tell him not to call her that because it was more intimate than he had earned the right for, but no one had ever called her beautiful and found that she just couldn't stop him. She could defend herself against 'love' and 'pet' but not 'beautiful.'

"Well," began Hermione, noticing that Ginny's head swiveled between Hermione and Sirius, watching irritably as the red head came to the wrong conclusion. She prayed for patience because Ginny had set her up on so many blind dates that she had lost count. If she thought she had a winner she was going to be so annoying. "There was a magical accident at work involving the calendar."

"I got your note," said Harry. "So, it works then?" He looked at Sirius and then back at Hermione.

"It wasn't supposed to do," she waved vaguely and rather dismissively at Sirius, "this."

"_This?_" said Sirius offended. "I'm reduced to _this_."

"Hermione," said Harry, shocked by the venom in her voice, unmistakable to someone who had known her as long as he had.

"I didn't mean it like that…exactly," she said, chastised. Sirius had the grace to feel a little ashamed, it was his fault, her aggravation, but it had been so _easy_ to get under her skin and so much fun.

"We've been best friends since first year and I've never known you to be so insensitive." Hearing Harry say the words 'best friend' plucked at something in Sirius' heart.

"I…I know Harry…it's just…it's just been a hard night, for all of us," she said, not quite willing to tell Harry that Sirius was a right foul git.

"It's not really her fault, Harry," said Sirius quietly, not willing to be a problem between these two. "I've been a bit…difficult." Hermione's eyebrows got lost somewhere in her hairline, surprised by him once again.

"So, you want to tell me what happened?" said Harry, getting back on topic.

"Allow me," said Remus in a tired voice. While Hermione made sandwiches he explained about the two magical artifacts and the accident with the potion and how all of that had led up to Sirius sitting in front of them. Harry sat dumbstruck as things like duplicate dimensions and potions that combined the powers of magical artifacts were explained and detailed.

Harry took a deep breath. "Wow." And then another. "So, he's here for good?" he asked hopefully, as Hermione passed out plates and glasses and laid a tray of sandwiches on the table with a flagon of pumpkin juice.

"Looks that way," said Remus with a smile for Sirius. "It's going to be a bit difficult, adjusting to this new life I mean."

Unwilling to acknowledge the fear that Remus had addressed he focused away from himself once again. "So, tell me about you," said Sirius to Harry. "You're married," he winked at Ginny who blushed. "Are there kids? I just saw you, two days ago, only you were just over a year and now you're what…twenty three?"

"Slow down," said Harry, chuckling. "You're obviously dead on your feet and have been through an ordeal. I imagine you could use some time to yourself and a good night's sleep. What do you say we call it a night and pick this back up tomorrow? I'll owl the Ministry and get the rest of the week off."

Sirius smiled at Harry. _'Just like Lily,'_ he thought. "I am tired and some time alone would be appreciated."

"You'll live here of course," said Harry. "Ginny and I have been staying in your old room but we can move into the master suite."

"No, you shouldn't change anything for me," said Sirius, but Ginny just patted his hand.

"Hermione," said Ginny. "Give me a hand?" Hermione nodded and followed Ginny out of the kitchen.

Once they were alone in Sirius' old room Ginny rounded on Hermione. "Handsome isn't he?"

"Right up until he opens his mouth," returned Hermione.

"I think he fancies you," said Ginny. "_Beautiful_."

"Do you ever think about anything else?" asked Hermione, conjuring a basket and putting some of Harry and Ginny's items in it.

"You're lonely," accused Ginny. "And it's not like we don't know him."

"You need to slow that overactive imagination of yours down, Ginevra Weasley. Leave the poor man alone." Hermione picked up the basket and left the room.

Ginny followed with a basket of her own, not to be deterred. When she made it to the master suite however Hermione was walking out. "Good night, Ginny," she said and disappeared behind her bedroom door.

Ginny let out a quiet sigh and finished moving the room alone. A few minutes later she descended the steps and greeted the kitchen's inhabitants.

"Your room is all ready for you, Sirius," said Ginny. "You ready Harry?"

"Yeah, so we'll see you in the morning?" Harry got up and squeezed Sirius' shoulder as he followed his wife to bed.

"G' night, Harry, Ginny," said Sirius.

For the first time since he had arrived he was alone with Remus. They shared a small smile over the kitchen table.

"I am sorry, Sirius, that I didn't come and talk to you myself," said Remus. "I've regretted it for many, many years."

Sirius acknowledged the apology with a smile, it was hard to believe but it hadn't actually happened to him and getting along was in his best interest. It was best to let this go. "I just can't believe they're gone, that Harry is grown. Fuck! Remus, he's…he's my age! I was jailed for most of his life and then…how many years did I have with him?"

"About two," said Remus sadly. "The first year after your escape you were on the run, so really, only one year."

Sirius got up and started to pace. "No matter what…no matter what, I missed it all, I was never there for him. I failed James!"

"It's true you were only in Harry's life for a short time but you had a huge impact on him." Sirius nodded at the kindness of Remus' words.

Suddenly Sirius slammed his back against the kitchen wall. "They're gone…they're really gone…," he whispered desperately, hysteria edging into his voice. The quiet of the kitchen and the company of his friend allowed for the impact of the loss of James and Lily to steal into his heart, squeezing it in a stranglehold. "It's all my fault, they're gone and I did it." The tears he'd been strong enough to keep at bay through sickness and finding a pretty, brunette witch to torment suddenly had nothing to hold them back. Nothing could keep him from his grief so he succumbed to it, sliding down the wall once again.

"Sirius, no," said Remus, standing up and taking a chair closer to his distraught friend. "_There was a spy_, what you did made sense at the time. You did it to keep them alive. None of us suspected Peter could rise to anything so grand as betrayer."

"He was always just little Pete, the wannabe Marauder, just happy to be in our company," croaked Sirius. "When did he turn? When did he have time?"

"You know as well as I do that Voldemort had Death Eaters in his number that went to school with us," said Remus. "They identified Peter as being the weak link in our friendships."

"So they recruited him?" asked Sirius, his voice still heavy with sorrow.

"He was afraid of Voldemort, of being killed by Death Eaters. I believe he joined of his own accord," said Remus. "From his confession it sounded like Voldemort, who is a skilled Legillimens, riffled through his mind and found the Secret."

Sirius sighed heavily. "I really want to hate him but you make it sound like he almost wasn't to blame."

"I don't think he realized that the Secret could be taken from him but like I said, _he joined of his own accord_. They must have been courting him for months, offering him protection in return for our secrets. The first act was of his own choosing, so by all means, hate him," said Remus, offering his hand to Sirius to help him up.

"How did Harry survive?" asked Sirius, taking Remus' hand and standing. "I only got a vague account from Hagrid that night. He said that Harry was to go live with Petunia because of Lily's blood. I understood that part, that Lily's sacrifice made him safe but it didn't explain why he was still there."

"Ah," said Remus. "It is easy to forget that you don't know the full story. There is more to my brief explanation here but Harry remembers the events from that night. James died first protecting Lily and Harry. Then he gave Lily the option to stand aside but she refused, of course, so he killed her too.

"When Voldemort cast the Killing Curse it rebounded on him because of Lily's blood protection. Her sacrifice that night ensured Harry's protection and gave the world a brief reprieve from the war."

"Merlin," breathed Sirius. "If...if they hadn't died that night…what…what would have happened?"

"Well, that's impossible to say," replied Remus. "The war would have gone on, Harry would have needed protection until the prophecy could be fulfilled. You don't know about the prophecy, do you?"

"Of course I know about the prophecy," said Sirius. "You really think James wouldn't have told me?"

"Right, right," said Remus, nodding his head.

"So…was it fulfilled? Where is the world today? None of you seem to have the sort of edginess that comes with being hunted," said Sirius.

"Harry fulfilled the prophecy and defeated Voldemort. There was a battle at Hogwarts which the kids…erm," he and Sirius exchanged an embarrassed smile seeing as Sirius was the same age as 'the kids.' "Well, anyway, they can tell you more about it, Dora and I were knocked out and missed most of the battle."

Sirius had about a thousand questions but only one came out. "Whose Dora?"

"Oh, heh…yeah, I'm married, Sirius." A hand waved in front of Sirius waggling a finger clad in a gold band. "I married your cousin Andromeda's daughter Nymphadora."

"Nymphie?" guessed Sirius. "You married little Nymphadora, Dromeda's daughter. Does she still hate the name?"

"Give it a go and find out," said Remus with a smirk. "Could be amusing."

"I'll just bet," said Sirius, grinning.

"She should be here any minute now," said Remus. "She'll be delighted to see you again."

"Merlin! She's older than me now, isn't she?" said Sirius, the impact of the huge change in his life hitting him full force once again. Just then the front door opened and they could hear something being knocked over and then righted along with a soft swear.

"Wotcher, Remus," called Tonks from the hallway. "Sorry I'm running a little behind …" Tonks rounded the corner, caught sight of Sirius and startled, nearly falling into the door.

"Merlin, sorry," she gushed. "I didn't realize we had company. I'm Tonks, Remus' wife," she paused for a moment to get a better look at Sirius. "You know for a minute there I almost thought you were…"

"He is," interrupted Remus. "Sirius, I mean. He is Sirius."

"Sure," laughed Tonks. "Although you could pass for his son."

"I can't believe you don't recognize me, Nymphie," said Sirius with a wide grin.

Tonks suddenly drew her wand as the Auror in her broke through. "Who are you," she asked dangerously.

"Dora," said Remus patiently. "There is a perfectly good, if somewhat lengthy explanation for all of this."

"I'll prove to you I am who I say I am. Do you remember when Cissy came to your, let's see, what was it, seventh birthday party? And me and James and Remus had come round to see you. We were on our summer hols and Cissy had just gotten engaged to Lucius and she went on and on and on about her pureblood match because she was stupid enough to think it would make your mum feel bad? And James transfigured her engagement ring into a niffler and I made him really small and really fast so he'd be hard to catch and she spent the next three hours trying to catch the little tosser to turn him back into her precious ring?"

Without any warning whatsoever Tonks threw herself into Sirius' arms, hugging his neck fiercely. "God, I missed you!" She was sobbing in his arms and he had never felt more helpless in his life.

Remus gently pried Tonks off of Sirius and pulled the blubbering, pink haired mess into his arms. Sirius really didn't know how to feel, realizing for the first time that there was an expectation for him to be his other self returned. It was like being forced into a play but you didn't know the plot or which character you were playing. If Rod Serling showed up it wouldn't shock Sirius in the least.

"I need some rest," said Sirius abruptly, standing, having had all he could take, missing the worried glance Tonks gave Remus. "Good night, you two."

Without a look back he left the kitchen for his room, knowing the way only too well. Each step on the stairs sighed quietly under his feet as the portraits muttered at his passing. Never in his darkest dreams did he imagine coming back to this place, even stranger was the sense of relief he felt once his bedroom door was closed.

Sirius didn't bother to take a good look around the room, catching Gryffindor banners and posters of scantily clad muggle girls out of the corners of his eyes. Locking the door and silencing the room, he threw his back across the dark, silken cover of his bed, dangling his legs over the side from the knees down and closed his eyes, letting the horror take him.

The scene replayed in his head, starting from the point where he threw off his bike and ran into the devastated house. When he got to the point where he found James' lifeless body he was howling out his grief and anger, his body quaking from head to toe.

Not even Regulus' death had hurt this much, his own flesh and blood. The bond between James and Sirius was soul deep, it was like losing a limb.

Infant Harry's screams of fear and confusion ripped him off of his bed in a rage, picking up whatever he could find, gas lamps, the sneakoscope he nicked from Filch, various books and anything else he could get his hands on and threw them at the walls, finding some small satisfaction in the sounds of destruction. The room was a complete shambles by the time he was spent, nothing left untouched as he physically expressed every inch of his heartache on the innocent room.

Seeing his hand close Lily's eyes brought him suddenly and violently to his knees, sobbing in anguished sorrow. Unable to still his defeated heart that had shattered on the broken bodies of James and Lily, numbed by an overdose of woe, Sirius held his position on the floor as the sobs quieted but not the tears.

It was nearly impossible to accept, a concept his mind found comforting, that maybe this was just some horrible and truly bizarre dream. Maybe he had fallen asleep at that witch's apartment after shagging her, er…Doreen was it, or maybe Dorcas, and this was just some fevered hallucination he was having. She'd wake him up any minute and coo to him, telling him it was all ok and that he just needed to get up.

Sirius sighed after a minute of waiting for something he knew wasn't coming; pleasant fiction though it was.

There was nothing left for him to do and that was almost the worst part for Sirius, the punishments had already been meted out. Voldemort was defeated, Pettigrew was dead. Who else was left that had a hand in the deaths of James and Lily?

What was there left for him to do but try to make sense of his situation?

That really was too much to ask at this point in time, especially since it was easier for him to accept that James and Lily were dead than it was to believe he had traveled some twenty odd years into the future. James loved The Twilight Zone, the days events had taken on the quality of a truly excellent episode.

"_Prongs…"_

And then the tears started all over again. Quieter, less angry with a little more acceptance and the finality that accompanied that, the world would forever be diminished in Sirius' eyes because James was no longer in it.

Standing from his position on the floor, his knees popping in complaint, he crawled back onto the bed, positioning himself in the center with a pillow under his head. Sirius let his mind drift to happier days, before all the fear and doubt, when he and James still got up to a few hijinx when Lily wasn't looking, crashing at his flat when James was too drunk to face her ire. Those were the innocent days before wives and babies, just after Hogwarts, reveling in the power of youth and rebellious masculinity.

Exhausted from traumatic events, time travel and sorrow, Sirius fell asleep with the memory of James burning brightly in his mind.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Shuffling sleepily into the kitchen, Remus found Hermione enjoying her early morning cup of coffee. It was a time of day they had come to cherish and had grown closer during those crack of dawn chats. He was pleased to see that she was in a much better mood then yesterday, smiling at him as he entered the kitchen, looking considerably less stressed.

"Good morning." She returned the greeting and then took a sip of her coffee, breathing in the aroma that she loved so much.

"I've got to be at work early, Remus," she said by way of an apology for not staying to chat.

"He won't be up for another hour at least," said Remus with a smirk.

"I want to like him," said Hermione, breezing past all the intros. "But he is such an arse."

"He's just coping, Hermione. You'll see, in a few days he'll much better, smoother, not so rough around the edges," consoled Remus.

"Well, that's something, I guess," she grumbled.

"Not that he won't still be a handful, but I think he'll let up on you a bit," reassured Remus, sitting down with his own cup of coffee.

"I wonder how Harry is doing with all of this?" she asked, taking another sip of her coffee.

"Hmm…hard to say. One thing that is for sure is that Sirius will be a fixture in our lives from now on," answered Remus.

"Maybe it's time for me to get my own flat," mused Hermione, surprised by Remus who was now laughing at her.

"You're not going to let him drive you out of your home, Hermione," said Remus, still chuckling.

She smiled, realizing he was right. "Except for you, we're all a bunch of strangers," observed Hermione. "Must be awfully strange."

"So, has Ginny chewed your ear yet?" asked Remus with a smirk.

Hermione groaned. "She is going to be completely insufferable."

"I thought as much," said Remus.

"I wish she would leave my love life in my hands and keep her fat nose out of it. She is so like her mother," grumped Hermione.

"Yes, her mother can be quite a bother," agreed Remus, uncharacteristically unflattering of the Weasley matriarch.

"Oh, no," said Hermione. "That was completely different Remus and you know it. You and Tonks were in love, you were just being stubborn."

"It still wasn't any of her business," groused Remus.

"You needed a push," insisted Hermione. "Look how happy you are now." Remus took a sip of his coffee to hide the smile if not the blush, Hermione clucked her tongue knowingly.

"Tell me if this is too personal a question," began Remus. "But is Ron the reason that you haven't been interested in finding a significant other?"

Hermione glanced at Remus sharply, mostly because it wasn't like him to pry. She realized he was only being a friend and softened her gaze. Before answering she could feel the blush flooding her face, making her feel a bit warm.

"Ron and I were, _are_, better as friends," she explained. "I guess after we broke up it was just easier to throw myself into work and not worry too much about my personal life. I have my friends and for now, it is enough."

Remus wanted to say more, wanted to say that whether she realized it or not she was lonely and it showed. The problem with that was that it might sound like he was encouraging her towards Sirius and in his mind it was not for him to say. There did seem to be an odd chemistry between them, Sirius wouldn't have harassed her so mercilessly if he didn't consider her on some level. Her attraction to him was undeniable but she also found him extremely aggravating and that wasn't necessarily a recipe for bliss.

"You really do have some wonderful friendships," he said instead. "Even with Ron despite your brief romantic history."

"Best friends," she confirmed. "I have two of the most wonderful friends that anyone could ask for."

"Harry and Ron are good men," he offered and then smiled.

"Well," she said, getting up. "I had better shower and get dressed. I've got a busy day ahead of me." She took her cup into the kitchen, as she was leaving she paused by Remus' shoulder. "You're a pretty fantastic friend, too, you know."

Remus smiled into his cup as she left and waited for the rest of the house to wake up. Before anyone else made it down, Hermione dashed into the kitchen and chirruped a good bye and then she was off for the day.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Ginny was the first of the Potter's to make it down the stairs. Expecting to see Hermione and Remus discussing the coming day, she was surprised to see Remus on his own, eating a bit of toast, drinking coffee and reading the morning Prophet.

Yawning as she walked into the kitchen, she grinned at Remus. "Pretty exciting day yesterday."

"Indeed," replied Remus, returning her grin.

"Must be odd for you," she mused. "You were rather close, you and Sirius. I know his death was hard on you."

"He was never quite the same after Azkaban," said Remus, thoughtfully. "It really took something from him. He was worn far beyond his years, it was hard to see him like that. He could be difficult to relate to. I think in many ways he was stuck somewhere in his twenties, just without all the…self confidence he used to have."

Ginny snorted. "Self confidence? Is that what you call that?" Her tone was far from critical, more affectionate, even indulgent.

"Oh, well," chuckled Remus. "You missed the real fireworks that went on before you arrived. I'm honestly surprised that she didn't hex him."

"So what was that all about?" asked Ginny, warming to the topic, a mischievous glint in her eye.

"That was Sirius avoiding his feelings," replied Remus. "Somehow he managed to crawl under her skin almost immediately. As long as he could focus on tormenting her he didn't have to focus on the enormity of the situation."

"It is staggering," said Ginny. "I can't imagine losing my best friends not to mention being ripped away from all that I knew and those I cared about. If I had to try and start over with a twenty year gap and the legacy of another person to always be compared with, I don't know what I'd do."

"Sirius is good at surviving, at coping in the midst of tremendous odds," said Remus. "He's got a quick, agile mind…it will be difficult at first but I think the more he learns about his incarceration and the brief few years that followed after he got out, the more he will realize that the fates have handed him a remarkable opportunity."

"G' mornin'," mumbled a yawning, stretching Harry as he ambled into the kitchen.

"Good morning, my love," sang Ginny from the table.

"Weird day yesterday," said Harry as he got himself a cup of coffee.

"We were just discussing that," said Remus, smiling as he buttered another piece of toast.

"Oh?" said Harry, as he took his seat.

"We talked a little last night, he and I," began Remus. "I told him what your mother's sacrifice did for the world. He'll be struggling with the grief of their passing for quite some time. I've never known two closer people than your father and Sirius. He's doing his best to cover it up but I imagine he thought of little else after he went up to bed last night."

"I was thinking about taking him to Godric's Hollow," said Harry. "To visit their graves, see the statue, visit the house."

"I think that is a very good idea," said Remus. "He's so raw right now and there isn't anyone left to enact vengeance on."

"Remus thinks that's what that business with Hermione was last night," said Ginny.

"Yeah, that was strange. She was so hostile to him!" exclaimed Harry.

"Well, said Remus. "It was not unprovoked. He was a right arse and just wouldn't let up."

"Oh," replied harry. "Like what did he say?"

"Yeah, I want to hear this too," said Ginny.

Remus flushed slightly at repeating Sirius' words. "He, ah, well, he made a lot of rather suggestive remarks that insinuated that she, well, more or less, had a burning attraction for him."

Harry nearly spit his coffee across the table. "To Hermione?"

Remus chuckled. "Yes, and he insisted on calling her 'beautiful' no matter how much it irritated her."

"And was he right?" asked Ginny. "Was she attracted to him?"

"Undeniably," said Remus with a smirk. "It still wasn't very nice or appropriate."

"Hmm…" murmured Ginny.

"Oh, no," said Harry. "No, Ginny. You're not going to start with that match making business. He has been through something awful and needs time to adjust. You won't be doing either of them any favors."

"Oh, fine," she sighed. "Have it your way." Remus had a feeling that would not be the end of it. Ginny had a single minded determination when it came to finding love for Hermione, badgering her into one blind date after another.

"Good morning," said a deep, hoarse voice from the kitchen doorway. Sirius didn't look like he had slept very well as he had circles under his bloodshot eyes. The three breakfast companions shared a furtive glance but the new comer showed no sign of alarm or suspicion as he shuffled sleepily into the kitchen he was only too familiar with.

"How'd you sleep?" asked Harry.

"Not too well," replied Sirius. "S'alright though. A little coffee and I'll perk right up." After making his cup he fell heavily into a chair.

"It'll get better," soothed Ginny. "You may not realize it yet, but you're among family."

"Be careful there, red," said Sirius. "You haven't met my family." There were a few chuckles from around the table which brought a puzzled look to Sirius' face.

"Actually, Sirius, we have," corrected Harry. "Until Hermione figured out how to take it down, your mother's horrid portrait hung in the entry hall."

Sirius gave an affected shudder for the amusement of his companions. "Where is she by the way?"

"Work," replied Remus, pointedly ignoring the significant look Ginny was trying to throw him.

"She's the first to leave in the morning and the last to come home at night," confirmed Ginny.

"Well, unless we go for a pint," said Harry.

"Sounds delightful," said Sirius sarcastically, a few of his early impressions of her were being confirmed.

"Yeah, well, that's Hermione," said Harry with a tone of mild concern for his friend.

"Well, no," said Ginny. "That's Hermione ever since things didn't work out with Ron."

"Bad break?" asked Sirius.

"You would think so, wouldn't you?" said Harry rhetorically. "But no, in fact they're fine now, as friends."

Sirius just quirked his eyebrows in response and took a sip of his coffee. "So, what are we going to do with Sirius Black?" he asked, a little joking, a little not.

"I thought maybe you and I could visit Godric's Hollow, if you wanted," said Harry.

Sirius stilled for a moment, caught off guard and then swallowed a hard lump in his throat. "Yeah, I think that would be a good idea."

"What about you Ginny? Remus?" asked Harry.

"I've got to go see mum today, remember?" reminded Ginny.

"Right, right," said Harry. "What about you Remus?"

"I'd like that actually," he began. "But I'm opening the store for Fred and George."

"Just you and me then, eh, mate?" said Sirius, trying to sound light hearted but his smile was too somber to be very convincing.

"After that," said Harry, in a teasing tone, "we'll figure out what to do with you."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

**A/N:** Thank you for all the wonderful reviews!

My life has become very, very complicated and a little up in the air. All of the uncertainty and stress I am under is making it hard to write consistently the way I used to. It will probably be a few months before I can get back into the swing of things.


	5. Challenge

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of the characters, I just like to play with them**

Challenge

After showering Sirius picked through the clothes on offer which had been boxed up sometime following his other self's demise but never given away. The choices were all about extremes, either clothes from his teenage years or those befitting an older gentleman than he. Unable to imagine picking these things out to wear, he remembered that he probably hadn't, he'd been a fugitive from the law. It wasn't as though he could stroll down Diagon Alley and pick up some new threads, now could he?

Everything was too tight, too uncomfortable, even by his standards. The clothes that seemed fitting for a man in his late thirties were long enough to fit him but just as tight as the pieces he remembered wearing in his youth. _How had he managed to lose so much muscle tone?_ Admiring his physique in the floor length mirror he shrugged his shoulders and set about magically altering that which suited his current taste in clothing.

Taking another look in the mirror he gave his image an approving smirk, now dressed in a pair of dark denim jeans that hugged him close, a snug fitting cloud grey corded sweater that almost perfectly matched his eyes, showing off his toned chest and torso and the black dragon hide boots he'd been wearing the night of his arrest. Over this he threw a set of heavy, woolen winter robes and exited his bedroom. Ginny was passing by at that moment and gave him a once over, unable to keep the appreciation out of her eyes. Grinning, he winked at her and made for the stairs with an ego that was bursting at the seams from her easy blush.

Poking his head into the drawing room he found Remus bidding Harry farewell as he made to leave for work by the floo network. Despite his resolution to let go of the fact that Remus hadn't visited him in Azkaban to hear his side of things, he felt a stab of resentment. Harry looked up which caught Remus' attention and turned to him before leaving, smiling in a way that was so familiar and yet so strange on the much older face. Harry's resemblance to James seemed even stronger when juxtaposed against Remus and if he pushed reality aside, which wasn't that difficult, given the quality reality had taken on, he could almost imagine that things hadn't really changed so much.

As if taking cues from his subconscious Ginny bounded into the room and began to boss people around.

"You'll be late if you don't leave now, Remus," said Ginny in a tone that would have made her mother proud.

"Bye, all," said Remus before leaving, pausing to gaze at Sirius once more, looking nearly as disbelieving as Sirius felt.

"If you're going to fit in all your stops you two had better get going," commanded Ginny in a brisk business like tone.

"Stops?" asked Sirius curiously.

"There are a couple of matters of business I'd like to attend to after Godric's Hollow," answered Harry as he stood up and gave his wife's cheek a kiss. "Say hello to Molly for me."

"Will do," she replied sweetly, pleased they were under way. "You boys be good."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Landing on the outskirts of Godric's Hollow, Sirius replayed the events from just a few nights ago, now twenty years later. Too strange, too bizarre to feel anything close to real, the events of the last two days seeming so impossible to him that there were instances in which he questioned his sanity. Perhaps seeing his closest friend, no, brother, dead and lifeless had driven him over a line from which his mind couldn't, or wouldn't, recover.

Actually, he knew better but it was less painful to attempt to convince himself of insanity than to accept his life as it was now. There was no choice but to adjust. In order to survive he would have to figure out what his place was, what he wanted it to be.

The leaf littered pavement was as familiar to Sirius as his own bedroom in number twelve, Grimmauld Place or the secret corridors in the castle he had once called home. How many times had he indulged Lily with a stroll around the town's square, loping a foot or two in front of the carriage on all fours, tongue lolling out the side of his head because his Animagus form delighted little Harry to no end?

Countless.

The fresh air always seemed to calm Lily's nerves in those trying times, before they had been marked for death and a fear became a certainty.

This tiny hamlet had changed little over the centuries so the giant obelisk in the center of town was something new and a genuine surprise. As they drew near the list of names carved in black stone changed into a statue that was as recognizable to him as his own face in the mirror.

Swallowing a thick knot of emotion he drew nearer still to rest his hands on the metal bars that surrounded the happy family captured in stone, gripping so hard his knuckles turned white with the strain.

Harry stood beside him wordlessly, allowing Sirius the quiet to grieve in peace while maintaining a supportive presence.

Sirius was grateful for the recognition his friends had been given, their sacrifice never to be forgotten. He struggled with the idea that their deaths were a necessity, inevitable if the safety of their world was to be secured.

The blissful notion that there would always be time for the important things in life, the adult things, was difficult to maintain while gazing up at the unseeing face of James Potter. James had been only too ready to lay his childhood aside and take on the mantle of a man; husband, father, protector.

Sirius fancied himself a warrior, a soldier, a fighter and in between a lover. He rather enjoyed playing the hero and until this moment he hadn't realized that that is what it had been; playing. Lily's only real complaint of Sirius, once she had overcome her aversion to he and James, had been that he never took the danger seriously enough, that he took too many risks.

Daredevil he was through and through but looking up at the faces of his friends he realized their quiet persistence at normalcy, family, life, love and home were worth more than all his wildly successful stunts combined. For the briefest of moments Sirius was both humbled and awed.

Sirius turned to look at Harry and smiled. "They were really special, your parents. The two finest people I've ever known."

Harry returned the smile and then turned away from the statue to cross the road to a little church and the graveyard just beyond. The evidence of fall crunched beneath their feet as the road gave way to a path that continued on under a kissing gate at the mouth of the graveyard. Sirius took a deep breath and followed Harry through who walked directly to where he knew his parents lay, had lain, side by side, for the last twenty two years.

Halting his steps, Sirius gulped in a breath of air, unsure if he was ready for this. Harry heard the harsh gasp and paused under the half naked branches of a silver birch, turning, to wait for his godfather, a man his own age, to steady himself.

Squeezing his eyes tight to fight back the onslaught of grief that threatened to suck him down, he succeeded after a moment and a slight shake of his head. Looking up at Harry he saw concern and understanding etched on his face and offered him a smile.

Sirius took a step forward, turning Harry back on his path, and glanced around at the ancient headstones, the history of wizard kind all around them. Pausing at several graves along the way to take note of those he had known and fought alongside, who had died in a war that cut so many good people down.

He looked up to see Harry gazing down at a pair of gravestones, his back turned to Sirius. As he approached, Sirius could feel his strength slip and then quite suddenly, decided he didn't care. Coming up alongside Harry, he read the name of his closest companion and his beloved wife, wrapped his arms tight around his own chest and wept.

The silence between Harry and Sirius was not uncomfortable and after several minutes of solitude, of silent tears and unimaginable grief, Sirius finally spoke.

"If only…" he began and then paused. "I think those two words will follow me around for the rest of my life. If only I hadn't talked James into Peter, if only I had insisted that they take Dumbledore up on his offer, if only I had hung around that afternoon, if only I had checked on Peter earlier, if only I had listened to my gut feeling…"

"You can't do that Sirius," said Harry, still gazing at the headstones, a look of such intense longing on his face. "It's not a fault of yours that they're dead. The fault is Voldemort's."

"That night, when I came and pulled you out of the house and Hagrid met me there to take you to your Aunt's," began Sirius. "The thing is, your parents never wanted you to go to Petunia's, so I was wondering how that went, you know, growing up?"

"My Aunt and Uncle are truly horrid people," said Harry. "My childhood was a bit of a nightmare, but then I got my letter, went to Hogwarts and…I don't know…it's in the past, you know? I'm happy now, really, really happy."

"So, when do I get to hear the whole story of my life?" asked Sirius. "I know that I went to Azkaban and that I eventually got out, but I know nothing about my life after that, except that I died, of course."

"Well, I thought we'd come here this morning and then run by Hermione's office and see what she has learned, maybe take her to lunch. There are a couple of changes I need to make at Gringott's and then we'll need to explain you to the Ministry." Every time Harry looked at Sirius the difference between this man and the man he knew as godfather were just staggering, tearing deeply at him to know just how wounded Sirius had truly been. Despite the understandable sadness, this Sirius' eyes were free of the shadows that haunted the older, more wearied version. Life burned brightly in the turbulent grey orbs, something he saw only once before, just moments prior to his death. "I thought maybe tonight we could delve into all of that. A lot happened in the few years that I knew you, it'll take more than just me to tell the story."

"Oh," said Sirius, nodding in acknowledgement. "Ok." Taking another look down at the head stones, he conjured a vase full of white lilies and placed it between the graves. The breath he let out was more of a low rattle, pregnant with the knowledge that he would never again hear James call him 'Padfoot.'

"Bye, Prongs," he whispered. "Lils."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

After a very brief viewing of the Potter's ruined, wreck of a home, Harry took Sirius to visit Hermione at her office to see if she had dug up any new information on the magical accident. Sirius had only given the house the briefest of glances and then stated quite bluntly that he couldn't take anymore that day.

The lift to take them up to her office was posh with marble flooring and wood paneled walls. As soon as the floor was selected and the door had closed a banner appeared before their eyes that boasted of industry awards, upcoming releases and top clients. It didn't escape Sirius' attention that the name Hermione Granger was associated with several of these awards and quite a few high profile projects.

The lift deposited them to the care of a friendly receptionist who disappeared to let Hermione know they were there after making a brief mention of the bookworm's busy morning. They had barely settled into their seats when the receptionist returned and led the way to Hermione's office.

Hermione was standing in front of her desk in a discussion with a tall well dressed wizard when the receptionist announced her guests before turning on her heel to return to her station.

"Mr. Shecklemeyer I'd like to introduce you to Sirius Black," said Hermione as she stepped toward Harry and Sirius with her arm gestured toward Sirius.

Shecklemeyer turned to her gentlemen callers with a politely apologetic look on his face. "Mr. Black, we are terribly sorry for what has happened to you. I want you to feel that the company is at your disposal, whatever you need, please call on us first. Our legal department will be in touch with you about settlement terms but please believe that we intend to bend over backwards to accommodate you anyway we can."

Sirius was in all honesty completely gob smacked. The legal ramifications of his situation had never occurred to him. He took the man's hand and shook it, pleased by Shecklemeyer's firm grip.

"I…wow, that hadn't occurred to me," he said with stunned honesty.

"I believe that the Department for Magical Accidents and Unnatural Occurrences are awaiting your arrival and they will facilitate reinstituting you to full legal status," Shecklemeyer looked to Hermione for confirmation who nodded. "There will be a full press release tomorrow which you may choose to participate in, or not, totally up to you and I think that covers it for now but as I said, whatever you need."

"Thanks," said Sirius, still at a loss.

"Harry," said Shecklemeyer, shaking his hand. "Always good to see you."

Hermione closed the door behind Shecklemeyer as he left, smiled at her visitors and conjured a couple of chairs for them to sit in.

"How much trouble is the Potions Master in?" asked Sirius.

"Suspension with pay," replied Hermione. "He's too valuable to let go of but they have to do something."

"Are _you_ in any trouble?" asked Harry.

"Merlin, no!" assured Hermione. "There was no excuse for that potion to be out of his laboratory. I'm good enough to qualify as a Master if I wanted to but it's really not my area of interest. He just can't seem to keep himself away from my office. Frightfully annoying actually."

"I didn't consider how seriously the company would take it," commented Harry. "Sirius and I were going to stop by the Ministry today but I wasn't sure where to start, it seems you've got all the details worked out."

"When were you thinking about going and I'll join you?" asked Hermione. "I have to give a full report of what happened. The Ministry will want to look like they are taking this seriously but since the calendar was commissioned by them its unlikely there will be much of an inquiry."

"It's a little early yet for lunch," said Harry. "Do you have time now?"

"Let's do it!" replied Hermione.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Sitting between Harry and Sirius in the office of the Head of the Department for Magical Accidents and Unnatural Occurrences, Hermione explained the details complete with official reports on both projects and the potion. The Department Head took careful notes of her explanation, glancing up occasionally to scrutinize the ruined conglomeration of magical inventions.

Sirius found himself becoming more and more impressed with the witch as he listened carefully to the explanation for the calendar. She possessed a genius he usually only associated with himself or James.

When the Department Head excused himself for a moment, Sirius leaned toward her and whispered into her hair, "Have I ever told you intellect is a turn on for me?"

If he was honest he would admit to hoping for an opportunity to get under her skin again.

Harry couldn't help the chuckle over Sirius' boldness and scooted his chair slightly to the right, just in case.

Turning slightly in her chair so that he would not miss the look of loathing in her eyes before she hexed him. "_Silencio!"_

"_Protego!" _The spell bounced easily off the shield he erected without bothering him to look the slightest bit ruffled. "Surely you can to do better than that," he taunted.

"Not in public I can't," she threatened, her wand twitching in her fingers.

"If we're going to start hexing each other you should be warned I'm an excellent dueler. You really don't want to start something you can't finish." Smug and over confident Sirius looked away from her as if to demonstrate that he was so unconcerned that he didn't even need to keep his eyes on her. The legs of Harry's chair muttered quietly against the carpet as he moved his chair a little further to the right.

"I don't have to be some undisciplined prankster to take you down, Sirius Black. I just have to wait for you to catch your reflection in the mirror to hex you." Red, faced and furious, her words hissed from between her clenched teeth.

Sirius let out a bark of delighted laughter. "Well, if you'll be waiting around to hex me won't I see you standing behind me in the reflection? Probably all a ruse to get a better look at my arse anyway."

Before she could retort the Department Head had returned, forcing Hermione to collect herself as she was acting in an official capacity for Shecklemeyer and Sons. It took every ounce of self control she possessed not to make a spectacle of herself.

"Mr. Black we have an usual set of circumstances as you well know. We can't revoke your Death Certificate because you did indeed die and we can't issue you a new Birth Certificate because you weren't born twice. What we have decided to do is issue you a Life Certificate which officially reinstates you to full legal status in the eyes of the Ministry. You can use this in any capacity that you would have used your Birth Certificate." The Head handed Sirius an official looking piece of parchment. "This is the official record and of course we have a copy on file."

"Naturally." Sirius took the certificate in his hands and looked at it carefully and then handed it to Harry to view.

"Thank you very much for your help," said Hermione politely, extending her hand, only too ready to go.

When they were in the hallway Harry glanced at his watch. "Care to join us for lunch?"

"I should get back to my office," she replied stiffly.

"Doesn't trust herself in my presence," said Sirius as an aside to Harry.

Harry tried to bite back the laugh but failed earning a deep scowl from Hermione. "The only thing I am worried about is doing something to you that might reflect badly on the company."

"Yes, I imagine overt public displays of affection are frowned upon when representing your employer," said Sirius nodding sagely, his eyes sparkling with mirth.

"C'mon, Hermione," said Harry. "When was the last time I got to take you to lunch?"

Hermione was determined to decline but as they turned a corner, headed to the main atrium, they were greeted by a crowd of familiar faces. Groaning deeply with the realization that she wouldn't be able to make her escape just yet, she breathed in while closing her eyes before planting as convincing a smile on her face as she could muster.

"Sirius Black!" boomed the deep voice of Kingsley Shacklebolt, Minister of Magic.

"I told you!" hissed an elated Tonks.

"Merlin! It's really true!" breathed a disbelieving Arthur Weasley.

Ron walked beside his father without comment but kept darting his eyes between Harry and Sirius.

Kingsley and Arthur approached Sirius and his two companions with excited disbelief. Sirius braced himself for another surreal experience as they rushed up to welcome him back. Their faces weren't quite right because they were so much older but his naturally gregarious nature and love of attention won over the uneasiness.

"Did you get back some of your youthfulness in that damn Veil?" asked Kingsley.

Hermione opened her mouth to answer but Tonks beat her to it. "I told you Kings, he's from another dimension."

"Right," said Kingsley with heavy skepticism.

"We've explained the whole matter to the Head of the Department for Magical Accidents and Unnatural Occurrences," interjected Hermione, resuming her role of spokesperson for Shecklemeyer and Sons. She held out her hand to Sirius, clearly requesting his official document. He regarded her proffered hand with a raised eyebrow and half grin. "The Life Certificate, Sirius," she said irritably.

"Oh," said Harry quickly, who still had it in his possession. "Here you go." Hermione took it from Harry and handed it to Kingsley.

"Ah," said Kingsley as he read the official record. "I imagine quite a tale goes along with this."

"Ginny is speaking to Molly today about having a welcoming party of sorts for Sirius at the Burrow in a few days," said Harry, throwing a guilty grin at Sirius for not warning him. "We thought it best to let you get settled in first."

"Oh, of course," said Kingsley, now thoroughly intrigued. "Well, I've got to run. I look forward to hearing the whole story in a few days." Kingsley hurried away as he was enveloped in a cloud of official looking witches and wizards leaving Ron, Tonks and Arthur behind.

"It's nearly lunch," said Tonks. "Fancy a visit to Diagon Alley?"

"To eat or to see Remus?" teased Hermione.

"No reason we can't do both," she said with an impish grin.

"Could be the last time you're able to visit London without getting mobbed as a celebrity," snarked Harry.

"Celebrity," said Hermione dryly. "Just what he needs."

Ron looked at her sharply, surprised by the bite in her words.

"Jealous you might have to share me, beautiful?" purred Sirius. Tonks and Arthur watched the exchange with reactions that were a mix between curiosity, disbelief and humor. Ron's mouth hung unattractively open, shocked by the suggestion that there was something going on between them.

"Yes, that's it exactly, Sirius. Whatever will I do without your undivided attention?" Hermione's irritation began to mount once again.

Ron cast a worried glance at Sirius.

"You've never experienced my undivided attention, Hermione," he said smoothly, catching her eyes in the full power of his seductively hypnotic gaze. "Not that you haven't thought about it."

Arousal and fiery aggravation warred within her for a moment, mesmerized briefly in the sway of his charm, furious for letting him make this point once again. The filter in her brain that prevented her from saying things she ought not was temporarily disengaged at the very point her aggravation swelled into fury.

"Fine, Sirius. Do you want to hear me say that you're attractive? You are, more so than the few photos we had of you ever hinted at." Hermione took a menacing step towards Sirius, ignoring the victoriously smug grin splashed across his face. "You are also annoying, arrogant and unpleasant for me to be around. If you think for one minute that I am some silly girl who's head can be turned by a pretty face you are sadly mistaken. I care more about what's inside the wizard," she seethed, jabbing him harshly in the chest. "From what I've seen you don't have much in your head or your heart. You act like you think you can have any woman you want, well, Sirius Black, you can't have me!" Hermione turned on her heel and marched away to the main atrium, leaving Harry, Arthur and Tonks with stunned expressions, but none more so than Ron.

"Well, that was…interesting," commented Arthur.

Sirius' grin was still firmly in place only now a strange mischievous light twinkled in his eyes. "I don't know about you but that sounded like a challenge to me."

"She's going to end up killing you and it will be your own fault," said Harry with complete faith in the truth of his words.

"I seem to remember saying something similar to James about Lily," said Sirius cheerfully.

"I've never seen her so unhinged," observed Tonks.

"Did you actually tell her that you could have her if you wanted?" asked Ron, finally moved to speak.

"I didn't, no. I _did_ suggest _she_ wanted _me,"_ replied Sirius before shifting his stance to face Ron. "Who are you?"

"Sirius, this is Ron Weasley," said Harry. "Ron, this _is_ Sirius but…"

"No, I heard," interrupted Ron. "Accident at Hermione's work." Sirius gave Ron a closer look, putting it together that this was Hermione's last man.

"Let's have lunch," announced Sirius lightly, deciding that Ron was probably a good place to start.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

**A/N:** Thank you for the reviews!

Thanks for the well wishes. Things actually are better.


	6. Turnabout

Turnabout

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of the characters, I just like to play with them**

Staring out across the Thames, Hermione sat in her office muttering to herself softly but venomously. Losing control in front of him like that had not been smart, she was furious with herself, even more so than with him. The situation had gotten away from her which rarely happened in her well ordered world.

It wasn't even as though she had let her guard down, he seemed capable of slipping past her defenses like a master thief, it was completely infuriating. Somehow she had to turn the tables on him, put him on the defense, but how?

Part of the problem was that she had sympathy for a dead man. That was going to have to end. Every encounter _she _started out with a willingness to be friendly, to not be adversaries and every time he caught her unaware.

_And then she admitted she found him attractive…_

"_Brilliant_, Hermione, just _fantastic_," she muttered to herself sarcastically.

No doubt he would exploit that beyond the bounds of reason, living with him would be nearly impossible. He was certain to be insufferable.

Drumming her fingers agitatedly across her desk, she touched an envelope which caught her attention. Tearing her eyes away from the river, she turned her head to take a look at it, eyes widening in recognition. Stiffening with deadly anticipation of what the contents of this envelope contained and trying to ignore the chilly fingers that played with her spine, she allowed herself to comprehend the significance of the envelope; official correspondence from the Shecklemeyer family.

She had seen an envelope like this once before. It was delivered to the man that used to be her boss, just before he was offered a severance package in return for never darkening their door again. He was brilliant at what he did, under normal circumstances Shecklemeyer and Sons forgave a wide variety of faults so long as you produced what the company wanted. However the complaints of sexual harassment had been stacking up for years and when Hermione added hers to the top of the heap, promising to quit if they didn't take action, the company made the logical choice. Hermione was the future and he was not.

Anger hit her suddenly because of how unfairly the punishments were being meted out. Hornbeam, _a wizard_, she noted to herself, got a slap on the wrist but the big mouthed, trouble making witch got the axe.

With a viciousness fueled by her frustration she tore the envelope open to see what they had to say for themselves.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Sirius was in an excellent mood. All melancholy thoughts had been effectively dispelled by one uptight, prudish and yet utterly entrancing brown haired witch. There was something about her temper he found beguiling. It so rarely happened to him that a woman gave chase, stirring something primitive within his male psyche.

His suggestion of lunch gave the others an opportunity to collect their thoughts after Hermione's display, although since she'd stormed off Sirius had noticed the stiffness across Ron's shoulders. Not understanding the dynamic between the three friends or much about Ron in general made it easy to pass it off as a more of a reaction to her than to him. However he did notice Harry's increased wariness and the one or two nervous glances he had thrown at Ron.

During the walk to the Apparation point Sirius offered up light conversation concerning the pros and cons of attending the press conference in person. The others joined in animatedly with Tonks enthusiastically encouraging Sirius to go. They paused the discussion to Apparate to the alley behind the Leakey Cauldron.

"Couldn't hurt my social life," he said to her as they rounded the corner, pulling the sides of his cloak together against the cold. "Witches rather like the famous and interesting and I'd be a bit of both."

"I thought you fancied Hermione," said Ron, giving a voice to some of his tension.

Sirius' step faltered as they approached the next corner, his face slightly twisted in puzzlement. "Where'd you get that idea?"

"That whole..._scene_...back at the Ministry," replied Ron his face turning slightly red. "That whole _challenge _business!"

Harry cleared his throat and tried to catch Sirius' eye.

"Oh, well," began Sirius, chuckling as he took a breath to continue when Harry bumped him slightly.

"Careful," muttered Harry quietly.

"I didn't mean that I took it that way," lied Sirius, completely changing what he had been about to say. "Just that it could be interpreted that way."

Harry exhaled quietly as he held open the door to the Leakey Cauldron and nodded ever so slightly to Sirius.

"Yeah, she can get a bit carried away," replied Ron, relaxing into the welcoming warmth of the pub.

"We'll meet you at WWW," said Harry, pausing Sirius with a hand on his arm. "I just need a quick word with Sirius."

Manuevering around the pub's patrons as it was full with the lunch crowd, Harry pulled Sirius to a quiet, shaded corner.

"I am not going to pretend that I aprrove of the way you've spoken to or treated Hermione but she is an adult and is quite capable of handling herself. Ron is never going to see it that way and has a tendency to over react, so just...be careful there." Harry gave Sirius a good natured clap on the shoulder and started to walk off. Sirius was a little stunned because it was exactly the sort of thing James would have said to him. 'Here's how I feel, no hard feelings, let's have fun.' It was James Potter to a T.

Harry paused and looked back at Sirius when he had gotten about ten feet away. "Aren't you coming?"

"Yeah, yeah," said Sirius, running a hand through his hair as he moved out and caught up with Harry. "So, what's a WWW?"

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Hermione glanced out of her office window as she packed the picture of Harry and Ginny on their wedding day into a box. She was going to miss the activity on the river, there was something peaceful about watching the various craft moving across the green brown surface of the water. With only a few personal items it didn't take long for her to pack things up and for the first time she wished for a whole office full of clutter to give her a little more time in this space. The letter, the only thing of hers that wasn't packed, seemed to stare at her, standing out stark and white against the deep mahogany of the desk. Hearing a noise at the doorway she looked up to see Mr. Shecklemeyer standing just inside her office.

"I know you are going to miss it here," he said soberly. "But we really feel like this is the best thing for the company."

"I know," she replied. "It's just...this was my first job after Hogwarts, I learned a lot here in R and D."

"You are going to be fine, you know," said Shecklemeyer. "I think you should make this afternoon all about you, take yourself clothes shopping and get prepared for the next adventure."

"Yes, sir," she replied, smiling weakly because she wasn't sure if she was ready to face what leaving this office meant.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Once they had collected Remus from WWW and returned to the Leakey Cauldron, they found a table and ordered their lunch. Sirius excused himself to go use the loo during which time Remus was filled in on the details of Hermione's explosion.

"Emmeline Pierce," said Remus quietly under his breath.

"Excuse me, who?" asked Tonks with a playfully raised eyebrow.

Remus smiled at her tease and said, "Well, you know her as Emmeline Vance and well, she gave Sirius a rather successful run for his money."

"What did I miss?" asked Sirius falling into his chair heavily but with a grace that should have been illegal.

"I was just being recounted about your morning's exploits and was reminded of Emma," replied Remus, the corners of his eyes crinkled with amusement.

"What about Pierce?" asked Sirius lightly but something defensive hovered over his last word.

"It's Vance now," corrected Remus, noting the slight shift in Sirius' posture. "I was just remembering that she couldn't be won over with your usual charm."

"What's your point?" inquired Sirius bluntly, still smarting from Harry's comment and not really enjoying the track that his friend was following.

Remus shrugged. "She had no problem telling you off either." He grinned widely at the faint flush that was creeping up Sirius' neck and then decided to drop it. "So, did you make it to Godric's Hollow?"

"Just a moment," interjected Tonks, placing a hand on Remus' arm before turning to Sirius with a grin. "So, what was your reaction to her…resistance?"

"Never bothered me," replied Sirius coolly, narrowing his eyes when Remus snorted, giving the werewolf a sharp glare.

Harry's eyebrows lifted in surprise, pulling his head back slightly he scrutinized the two Marauders; one amused, the other annoyed. "What's so funny?"

"Well…" Remus drew the word out slowly, thoughtfully, not wishing to twist the knife too deeply. "Sirius was unaccustomed to…" He trailed off as he considered the best word to use to say this nicely.

"Rejection?" supplied Tonks, earning a soft chuckle from her husband.

"Something like that," he confirmed for her.

Sirius took a deep breath, raising a hand with his index finger extended but before he could retort their waitress showed up with food. His indignation got lost in the distraction and by the time everyone was served they were already on to other topics. While he ate, he quietly brooded over Harry's words. He knew Harry wasn't really reproaching him, that he just wanted to help Sirius avoid a potential confrontation with Ron. None of what Sirius had said to Hermione was meant all that seriously, it was a bit of a lark to him. Apparently it wasn't as amusing to Harry as he thought and pranks and teasing were only fun with an appreciative audience.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

It was late into the evening when Hermione opened the door to number twelve, Grimmauld Place completely exhausted. The warmth of the house, the smell of food and the sound of laughter and happy chatter coming up from the kitchen was a welcome comfort. She took wobbly steps down the stairs toward the sounds and smells where she would be able to relay her news. Stepping across the threshold to the kitchen caught the attention of its inhabitants bringing the conversation to a full stop. Hermione had exchanged her comfortable and rather boring clothes for a smart, knee length grey dress and black heels. The slim dress hugged her body, showing off curves that had been hidden under her usual attire.

"Wow," said Ginny after a minute of silence. "Hermione, you look amazing!"

"It's not too much?" she asked, looking down at herself.

"What's the occaision?" asked Remus. He slid his glance over to Sirius who had been quiet since she'd walked in to find him staring unguardedly at her.

"Oh, I made junior partner," she replied without much enthusiasm. "The company was really impressed by my work on the calendar, my ideas I suppose. I'll be one of the public faces for the company so..." She looked down at her new clothes again and sighed.

"You're not happy about that?" asked Harry, unsure why she seemed so depressed about such good news.

"I really liked where I was, just nervous I suppose." Looking around the table she found the only available seat which happened to be next to Sirius, who was staring at her a bit strangely. Realizing she was coming over to sit by him, his eyes focused and he sat up a little straighter. She took her seat and looked at him, unnerved by his quiet. "What's wrong with you? I've been here a full five minutes and you haven't been ridiculously inappropriate once."

"Congratulations on your promotion," he replied sincerely. Hermione stared him for a minute.

"Right, whatever," she said and turned away. "So what were you all talking about when I got home, I interupted something and it sounded entertaining."

"We were telling Sirius about meeting him in third year," replied Ginny. She had gotten up to fix Hermione a plate for dinner but suddenly let out a small but high pitched squeal and dashed out of the room.

"She can be very excitable," remarked Sirius with a chuckle. Ginny returned with a rolled up poster which she handed to Sirius before getting Hermione a plate of food.

"I didn't know you still had one of those," said Harry as his wife sat back down next to Hermione.

"It's not mine," said Ginny, "its Hermione's from when she had that cr-" A sharp jab to the ribs silenced Ginny. Hermione cringed as she glanced at Sirius but he was too focused on the poster to pay attention to what Ginny had almost said. He was staring opened mouthed at the shouting, wild eyed, matted wreck of a man he had been. Looking up at each of them for conformation that this wasn't a joke, that this was really him, he was met with one somber smile after another. Sirius took one more look at the poster and then furled it back up, having seen quite enough of that, and handed it to Ginny.

"It's actually Hermione's," she said, grinning, determined to have her say.

"Oh?" asked Sirius, trying to read Ginny's expression.

"She stole it from the wall in the Leakey Cauldron," said Ginny impishly.

"Well, we needed to know what Sirius looked like," defended Hermione. "We thought he was trying to kill Harry."

"Then why was it here, in our old room?" asked Ginny. "We didn't come to headquarters until a year and a half after Sirius' escape."

"Just give me the damn thing," growled Hermione.

"We don't know where you went after you rode away on Buckbeak," said Harry, returning to the conversation they were having before Ginny tried to put Hermione on the spot.

"Central America," offered Remus. "I didn't realize you didn't know."

"This is depressing," said Sirius suddenly. "Does anyone have to be at work tomorrow?"

"I think we're all off tomorrow," replied Remus. "Why?"

"That settles it," said Sirius. "There is a promotion in this house and we are celebrating it by getting completely pissed!"

"Oh, no," said Hermione. She had no desire to be drunk in front of Sirius, danger lay along that path.

"C'mon," he purred softly, his tone inviting and friendly. "You're not afraid to let your guard down a little, are you?"

_Where was the prat who had been harassing her for days?_

"Yes, actually," she replied, coming to her senses.

"No! No!" exclaimed Ginny. "Sirius is right, you need to celebrate this the way normally social humans do, Hermione."

"Getting drunk equals normally social?" scoffed Hermione.

"One drink won't kill you," said Harry. "Let us toast you."

"If you don't drink with us I'll think it's because you were afraid to be around me when your inhibitions loosened up a bit," Sirius said softly by her ear while the others tried to encourage her to celebrate with them. "And wouldn't that mean I've been right all along?"

"Fine," she said curtly and rather abruptly. "One drink."

"Excellent," he said as he raised his wand and looked around Hermione at Ginny. "Pantry?"

"Uh, yeah," replied Ginny, flicking her wand at the cupboard. The cupboard doors opened with a soft, protested whine from the hinges. Six glasses, all mismatched, flew out of across the kitchen from the cupboard, each landing with a soft 'thunk' on the old oak table.

Sirius caught the bottle of whiskey as it flew across the kitchen, uncorked it and poured a first round. Raising their glasses to her, Hermione was congratulated on her success. The warm, amber liquid was spicy on her tongue but carried with it an immediate feeling of relaxation. There was a defiant glint in her eye as she looked at him with the cool of the glass on her lips. He just smiled in return and tipped his glass back. Looking away from him with a smll huff, irritated by that little smirk, she discussed her promotion in greater detail. Sirius let her be, watching and listening as she sipped her drink until she came to the end of it.

"Have another?" offered Sirius. "You have my word that no matter how you throw yourself at me I will remain a gentleman."

"I would never-" she started to say.

"Terrific," he interupted and poured her another glass. "Bottoms up!"

"So, will you be redoing the calendar still?" asked Harry, enjoying her company like this. Taking time to relax with friends was something she had done less and less of since her break up with Ron.

"Oh, yeah," she replied. "But with a staff of my own."

"You know, I glanced at the design today and I think I know why you can't get a sequence to stop," said Sirius, leaning back on two legs of his chair.

"Really?" She didn't mean to sound quite so surprised.

"Your pattern of runes was continuous, there was no beginning or ending sequence." For a moment he wondered if she were angry with the way she was looking at him so intently.

"Of course," she said with a large smile after a minute of thought. "I can't believe I didn't see it before."

"The pattern you have set up is really quite slick," said Sirius. "I mean that's the really hard part, right? You might think about using Gebo and Fewaz to open, not sure about closing."

"Well, I'm going to have to shift a few things around on the design then," she said before taking another sip. "How do you know this? You weren't exactly the studious type," she said suspiciously, her words hinting at an accusation.

"That hardly means I never studied," replied Sirius coolly. "James and I weren't at the top of our class without putting in some effort. The more we knew, the better our pranks were."

"Sorry. I just never pictured you as someone who would work that hard." It came out a little blunter than she intended.

"You work hard so you can play hard," said Sirius simply, feeling a little smug over having surprised her.

"That's what Ron and I have been trying to tell her for years," muttered Harry, pouring himself another drink.

"When did you two ever work hard?" teased Ginny, keeping silent up til now because it seemed, to her anyway, that Sirius was drawing Hermione into his interest. "If it weren't for Hermione you two would have lost your necks long ago. Thank goodness she didn't mind working as hard as she did. Poor thing never seemed to have any fun."

"I''d do it again you know, just to keep us safe. I didn't mind being scared witless most of the time. I guess with everything being as dire as it was, fun just didn't seem that important." She took an impressive swallow from her glass, finishing it.

"Don't you think it's time you had a little fun, Hermione?" Sirius leaned in as close as he dared while pouring her a third whiskey.

"Don't bother," said Ginny, sighing. "Do you know she has never taken a vacation?"

"That's not true! I have fun! What about our visit to Charlie in Romania?" Her bright eyes and loud voice suggested the alcohol was having an influence.

"Oh, Hermione," said Remus with real tenderness in his voice. "That was three and half years ago, dear."

"Oh," she said quietly, taking another large sip of her drink.

"Not much of a personal life there," commented Sirius dryly.

"Personal lives are over rated," returned Hermione, resenting having him evaluate her.

"That all depends on who you're getting personal with," snarked Sirius cheekily.

"Ever since you broke up with Ron you just sort of disappeared behind that desk," said Tonks, the last to throw in her commentary.

Hermione took a large swallow of her alcohol. "Ron and I just weren't right for each other and honestly there really wasn't anything that Earth shattering about being in a relationship. I'm content on my own."

"What about your need for companionship and love?" asked Ginny, sitting forward a little. As she had her here, she was going to use it.

"Not to mention sex," quipped Tonks.

"Is this not companionship?" she asked. "I am surrounded by people who love and care for me and far as sex goes, honestly," she paused to down the last swallow of her third whiskey. "I don't know what all the fuss is about."

"Ok, I can't let that one go," said Sirius with a soft chuckle. "What do you mean when you say you don't know what all the fuss is about?"

"Well," said Hermione without batting an eyelash. "It's just a lot of groping, grunting and heavy breathing, then just when it starts to feel kinda nice, it's over." Harry choked on the whiskey he was attempting to swallow.

"I am so glad Ron decided not to join us," murmured Remus while trying not to laugh.

"You guys are all I need," said Hermione laying her head on the table and closing her eyes, letting her mind float, a swirl of color, sound and sensation. After a minute she raised her head and announced she was going to bed.

"Tomorrow," said Harry, once he heard her on the stairs. "When she wakes up, she is going to remember every word of this conversation and kill us."

Sirius chuckled merrily.

"I don't know why you're laughing," said Tonks. "She's starting with you."

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**A/N:** Thank for the reviews! I know I used to be so much better about responding to reviews when I was working on Innocence but I just don't have the time anymore. I appreciate them more than you know and try to look over them when writing my author's notes to answer any questions (without giving away anything important).

I apologize that my updates aren't coming as quickly as they did when I started Innocence. I just don't have the free time anymore. They are coming just not as fast.

Is Sirius too cocky? I don't really think so, I think it is more that her reaction makes him a little worse. When she reacts, it is highly amusing for him and so he just keeps pushing it. He really hasn't stopped to consider what an ass he is being but he will, he'll get there and then he will find a situation that he set up that is not to his liking.

Ron is lame in bed and now all of his friends know it too. Is that bashing enough, my dear? I hope so because I did it just for you. You know who you are. (Okay, okay. It fit the plot but still, I knew it would amuse.)


	7. Remorse

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of the characters, I just like to play with them.**

Remorse

Blinking a few times to clear the haze of sleep from her eyes while stretching her limbs a bit to encourage her body to wake up, Hermione raised a hand from under the covers to touch her aching head. Hangovers, she decided as the loud, demented brass band played in her head, were a most effective deterrent to the liberal use of alcohol. If her brain had the will to engage she might have pondered why someone would risk the experience twice but the act of pondering was too painful to entertain.

The pressure let up slightly as she ungracefully raised up, slipping her legs from under the sheets and tapped the hardwood floor with her toes until she found her slippers. The cool air in her bedroom was lightly refreshing but didn't stop the internal wobble, a faint queasiness of the brain. Swaying slightly as she got two legs under her, she put one reluctant foot in front of the other until she reached her bedroom door.

Opening it a crack, she listened for the sounds of roused souls, only satisfied to leave her room after confirming that all was quiet. Closing her door softly behind her, she slipped across the hall to the bathroom.

The unnaturally enthusiastic band allowed for only those thoughts which were matters of human necessity; the loo, breathing and food were all she could manage for the moment. Although she couldn't yet identify why, she was possessed of a vague instinct that desired no contact with her house mates. Padding softly down the stairs, she took care to be so quiet that not even the portraits stirred at her passing.

Dehydration, she remembered from somewhere, was a key factor in obtaining a hangover. She wanted nothing more than to personally and permanently silence the relentless thud, reaching the kitchen was her most crucial priority. Stepping off the stairs and turning into the hallway that led to the kitchen, she was eager to get some water into her system. Upon sighting the doorway to her target destination her chest clenched into a tight, cold grasp which served to further encourage the pounding between her ears; there was someone in the kitchen.

The light spilling into the hallway combined with the soft sound of someone humming gave away the human presence. The initial shock of adrenaline was replaced by a feeling of irritation but she couldn't remember why she should be irritated.

Figuring it to be Remus, whom she couldn't raise a strong sense of aggravation for, she continued down her path. When she crossed the threshold into the kitchen though, her assumption proved wrong. The last person she wanted to deal with at this time or any other was carefully watching a cauldron simmer over a low flame. The feeling of irritation swelled uncomfortably as the band kicked up its a efforts just a tic, effectively banishing any hope for clear, coherent thinking. She coughed slightly to announce her presence.

"Morning beautiful," chirruped Sirius as he added a last ingredient.

Unable to identify the substance and not caring enough to try she crossed to the table with barely a grunt for him.

"I figured you to be a light weight so I'm brewing a fail safe hangover relieving potion for you." Sirius stirred the potion clockwise three times and continued to observe the potions progress, glancing over at her with a sly half smile.

The ridiculous endearment and his assumptions about her tolerance almost earned him a reaction but the consideration of brewing a potion to ease her pain buttoned her lip of any aggressive verbiage. "What's in it?"

"Best not to ask," he replied, flashing her a quick mischievous grin.

Selecting a small brass ladle from an old crockery canister with a large, ostentatious 'B', the lip of which sprung out from one side to pour its contents, he scooped out a measure of smoking liquid, poured a small amount and set it in front of her.

Hermione looked into the porcelain cup to view the clear liquid and the smoke that wafted off, drinking quickly and without too much thought, only hope for an end to her misery.

The liquid was scalding hot, searing down her throat and into her gut. Once settled there she could feel the magic flowing back in the opposite direction, out and up, speeding like wind over water to her head. A soft squeak escaped her lips as the band was summarily executed, followed by a tickling sensation coming from out of her ears. A cold shiver ran down her spine making her whole body quiver, she shook like a dog after a bath.

"Feel better?" asked Sirius sweetly.

"Yes, thanks," she murmured quietly.

With the pain gone, her mind and memory were splendidly restored.

"_You_," she suddenly hissed, patting her house robe and realizing with disappointment that she had left her wand upstairs.

"Me?" he said innocently enough.

The porcelain cup was still in one hand, she slammed it down on the oak table as she slowly stood to her feet with murder in her eyes. "_You're not afraid to let your guard down a little, are you?_" she mocked, using his words from the previous evening. "You planned this!" she accused taking a step towards him.

If she had her wand, he would have been a bit more apprehensive but as it was she was just one little witch with a bad temper. "Oh, come off it," he returned. "How was I supposed to know you had never gotten any satisfaction from Ron?" He was leaned casually against the counter beside the sink with his arms crossed in front of him, a lazy smirk gracing his amused face.

"If you're still here when I come back with my wand I'm doing something painful...and _permanent_!" she promised, realizing just as he had that physically she was no match for him but magically...

"Going to hex my balls off, beautiful?" he taunted. "Might be a bit difficult for me to show you what all the fuss is about without those."

"I've got my sights set on something I'm certain is nearer and dearer to your heart, Black," she said dangerously, her eyes flicking momentarily from his eyes to the top of his head. "But you're right about one thing. You will never get a chance to show me '_what the fuss is about'_!"

"Do you have any idea how bloody gorgeous you are when you're angry?" He was completely captivated with the fury in her eyes that desired nothing more than to incinerate him on the spot. She had spirit, this one!

"I'll be back with my wand," she vowed softly and turned on her heel, ready to storm out of the kitchen but was brought up short by the rest of the house's inhabitants who had been watching the display between herself and Sirius. Clenching her jaw, her expression set in iron, she pushed into the crush of onlookers pausing briefly to look Tonks straight in the eye.

"Well, you're off to an early start," commented Remus as he entered the kitchen.

Ginny followed Hermione up the stairs and then an argument could be heard between the two witches. A few cross glances were shot at Sirius for his behavior and then suddenly a door slammed. Sirius glanced at the ceiling when the heavy lurching sound of the upstairs shower cutting on alerted the house to Hermione's whereabouts. Footsteps on the stairs preceded Ginny entering the kitchen with a terrifying glare on her face, her eyes were only for Sirius.

Lifting her wand out of her pocket she advanced towards the Animagus, pointing it directly at him. "I swear if you don't start treating her with a more respectful tone _I_ will be the witch you have to worry about!" As tempted as he was to defend himself, after all it was Hermione who had come after him, the look in Ginny's eyes suggested that was an awful idea. Ginny and Sirius stared each other down for several long tense moments before she turned away.

A high pitched whine and rumble announced that Hermione's shower was complete, as did the muted sounds of one door opening and another closing from a couple of floors up.

"You might want to make yourself scarce," suggested Harry with a grin for Sirius, attempting to break the tension.

"Hermione won't be hexing anyone, she's sorted. For now," said Ginny from the counter where she was beginning to prepare breakfast.

Clearing her throat quietly in the doorway, glaring daggers at Sirius, Hermione got the attention of the kitchen. "There is a briefing with the Vice President of Media Relations at 11:00. If you are planning to attend please be at the eighth floor conference room B and don't be late."

Sirius smiled at her appreciatively as she was wearing her new dress and shoes and had taken some care with her hair and added a little make up. It wasn't that she had done anything drastic by normal convention, just that for her, this was a surprising and pleasing new look. For a moment he thought it would be interesting and even a little fun to watch her handle male attention, she was clearly unused to it. That thought led to a little frown and an odd feeling of discontent. Brushing it off, he smiled at her and let his eyes trail up her body, letting her see his approval. "I'll be there with bells on."

"As long as they are attached to a choke collar that'll be just fine," she returned before turning to leave the kitchen.

When the front door open and closed Ginny rounded on Sirius once more. "You will make an apology. _Today_!"

Sirius swallowed and nodded, finding the red head almost as scary as Lily.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Hermione was trying to concentrate on the calendar's pattern of runes as she worked out a new one on parchment. This did not help her avoid thoughts of Sirius because he was the one who had given her the idea of beginning and ending sequences. Her quill paused in its scratching against the parchment as she let out a long sigh.

_That utter, utter prat!_

_"Might be a bit difficult for me to show you what all the fuss is about without those," _she mocked quietly. "Never!" she hissed to herself.

What she needed and didn't have was ammunition, something she could come back at him with him, turn things in her favor, send him on the run and ducking for cover. Some juicy piece of... Hermione stopped breathing altogether as she remembered something from the first hour that she met him.

_"Bullshit! This is some Death Eater trick. If you're Moony, prove it."  
_  
_"The night before the Christmas hols in our fifth year I caught you snogging Lily in the Astronomy Tower."_

She could kiss Remus.

_I don't believe you," said Sirius harshly. "You look like you could be Moony's dad but I saw Moony just the other day and believe me he could not have aged that much in less than a week."_

_"Well, you're as tactful as ever," remarked Remus lightly. "Would you like me to continue to mention embarrassing moments from your youth? There was a particular incident in the prefect bathroom that I happened to walk in on."_

Sirius' eyes widened in shock. "You swore!"

_"And I've kept my vow," interrupted Remus._

Not one but two sweet and juicy morsels that she could use against him.

"I wonder just how committed Remus is to keeping that secret?" she mused to herself.

"Committed to keeping what secret, beautiful?" Hermione looked up to see _him _lounging in her doorway like he belonged there.

"You're early," she said grumpily.

"Harry said something to me the other day," he paused to glance out the window, frowning at the change in the view. "Ginny as well. You see...this has all been rather difficult for me and they made me realize...well, I've been a bit of an arse to you."

"Yes, you have," she agreed. "I'll be honest, I don't like you very much."

"I'd like to change that," he said quickly, concentrating on his boots.

"That's unlikely," she assured him, his timing for this conversation struck her as strange.

"I'm really not so bad once you get to know me."

"How did you find my office, anyway?" she said ignoring his attempt for civility.

"Oh, uh...there's a board downstairs with your name on it." Glancing at the parchment under her fingers he smiled to see she was already trying to use the information he gave her. "How's that going?"

"Not sure yet," she replied. "I've had some difficulty concentrating and now I'm dealing with a massive interruption."

He ignored her pointed comment. "Can I help?"

"No, go away," she replied. He just smirked at her and conjured a chair and took his seat beside her. "You really don't listen very well, do you?"

"James and I used runes once in a prank on someone who had a crush on James' girl. We stuck him in a memory loop of the day Lily finally saw him for what he was." Sirius grinned wickedly, ignoring her rebuff entirely.

"And you think that's alright?" she asked him heatedly. "Did you know that Snape was a hero?"

"Do you know that it's very irritating having people you are newly acquainted with know everything about you," said Sirius grumpily. "I may not know who he ended up being but I sure as hell knew who he was when we were kids!"

"Kids, Sirius," returned Hermione. "Something you never got very far away from!"

"I'm not that man, Hermione," said Sirius earnestly in a quiet tone of voice.

"Maybe," she replied. "But he is, or at least was, you."

Sirius shook his head. "You've never known me."

"Fine," she said, pushing the parchment away with her fingertips since it was clear he was determined to continue bothering her. "Tell me something I don't know, like for instance, what you were doing in the prefect bathroom that Remus isn't supposed to say anything about."

Sirius' entire body went still and tense, his eyes making contact with hers briefly before looking away. "You've got a good memory," he said irritably.

"Come on, then," she said, supressing the urge to giggle at having successfully turned the tables. "What's the big secret?"

Sirius sighed and let his head fall back to look at the ceiling. "It's embarrassing," he muttered softly.

"Yes, well, you've been embarrassing me in front of my friends since I met you. Fair is fair."

"Fine, but I get something in return," he countered.

"No deal," she replied. "You owe me, and I can tell anyone I want to."

"What! That's hardly fair!" he said heatedly.

"Oh, I'd say it is just as fair as everyone I know understanding with perfect clarity just how dissatisfying my sex life with Ron was."

"That was his failing, not yours," offered Sirius hopefully, wanting to placate her a bit.

"Hardly the point, Black," she replied briskly, not giving an inch of the ground she had gained.

"I really like it better when you call me Sirius," he said softly, his grey eyes holding hers in a moment that made her temporarily forget he was an arse.

Hermione cleared her throat and looked away. "All the more reason to stick with Black."

Sirius sighed and looked away.

"So, prefect bathroom, highly embarrassing...details please," said Hermione, doggedly staying on track.

"I'm a proud man, Hermione," he said quietly. "I am hoping that this stays between us..."

"I'm promising nothing," she replied, hoping that all this build up ended in a truly juicy bit of gossip.

"What do you know about Lily and James'...er, courtship?" he asked, shifting up in his chair to rest his elbows on his knees and lean over them a bit.

"Well, Harry said that he was surprised that Lily hated him at first," she answered with a bit of a smile, wondering where this decision to confess was coming from. She hadn't really expected him to comply.

"Hate!" snorted Sirius. "Fancied the pants off him more like, he was just a bit too cocky for her liking, until he grew up a bit."

"So, what does this have-"

"Let me tell the damn story, woman!" interrupted Sirius with a playful glare. Hermione smiled sheepishly and folded her hands in her lap and waited.

"Anyway, she liked to joke that the reason she wouldn't go out with James was because he was already in a relationship with me." Hermione giggled at that earning a chuckle from Sirius. "Yeah, well...James never saw that as funny and so Lily used that joke a lot to irritate him. When she found out about the memory loop we stuck Snape in she was really angry. I mean she was just as angry at him for what he'd said but she was also mad at herself for leaving Snape defenceless with us. I am guessing that you know the whole story here?"

Hermione nodded. "Harry was taking Occlumens lessons from Professor Snape-"

"Professor?" interrupted Sirius. "Dumbledore made that man a professor?"

"He was a-"

"Yes, yes," said Sirius brusquely. "Hero. You mentioned that." He sighed his irritation that this hated childhood enemy was ever in a position of power over James' son.

"Snape called Lily a-"

"Don't say it!" cautioned Sirius. "It's a filthy word and not one I care to hear passing your lips." Hermione looked away, thinking it was a bit hypocritical for him to censure her.

"So, back to the story. Lily decided that James needed to be taken down a peg and deserved to be pranked himself. She knew that James and me were curious about the prefect bathroom on the fourth floor and that Remus was too much of a rule minder to ever tell us what the password was. It was sort of a standing joke. Pretending to extend the olive branch, she gave James the password. What we didn't know was that she had tampered with the room a bit. James refused to ever discuss the incident but I found out from her years later that it was a combination of a charm set on the room and a potion additive to the taps."

"Oh, no! What did you do?" asked Hermione, expecting the worst."Did the two to you-"

"Nothing like that!" said Sirius scandalized that she would even think it, much less suggest it. "You have a dirty mind, Hermione!" Sirius looked at her, smiling slowly to have found out how devious she could be.

"I-I...I didn't even say what I was thinking," she defended but Sirius just shook his head in mock sadness.

"Well, if that is a fantasy you are ever hoping to play out, let me just say that I am not your man," joked Sirius, gleeful to have found a way to get under her skin again.

Hermione stood up and was about to tell him off but Sirius beat her to words. "You really don't take teasing very well, do you?"

"Its lewd!"

"It was a joke, Hermione. You've made your feelings on the subject of me more than clear. Do you want me to finish the story or not?" Letting a bit of aggravation enter his tone that even he didn't fully understand, he waited for her to regain her seat. With much of the humor gone from him and no longer much up for story telling, Sirius cut to the quick. Something about what he'd just said left him with a feeling of disappointment. "Anyway, long story short, Remus finds out what Lily did and comes to rescue us from reciting Shakespearean love sonnets to one another."

"You read Shakespeare?" she scoffed.

"Actually, neither James or I had even heard of the man before that day but Lily you see, was quite clever with charms." Sirius stared at his hands feeling a bit foolish for reasons that were unrelated to his confession.

"That doesn't sound nearly as bad as you might think," said Hermione, misreading his change in mood.

"Well, we got her back but that is a story for another day," said Sirius quietly.

A soft knock at the door lifted both their heads to see who the visitor was. Miss Hardfoot smiled hesitantly at Hermione and then her eyes opened wide when she recognized Sirius.

"Hello Miss Hardoot," said Hermione pleasantly. "Ready for the briefing?"

Miss Hardfoot smiled and nodded and then flicked her eyes to Sirius.

"I'm sorry," said Hermione. "Miss Hardfoot this is Sirius Black. Sirius this is Miss Hardfoot. She had a hand in your being here as well."

Sirius smiled charmingly at the young witch and politely shook her extended hand. "I suppose a thank you is in order."

Miss Hardfoot blushed deeply and nodded, looking away to find Hermione shaking her head and then blushing even deeper.

"Shall we?" asked Hermione, getting up from her seat as she grabbed some notes.

"After you, ladies," said Sirius gallantly with a wink for Miss Hardfoot. Hermione pursed her lips slightly at the display and then huffed when Sirius caught her irritation. He did a double take and then grinned lasciviously at her, his spirits suddenly soaring to see a slight display of jealousy. His soft chuckle rang in her ears as they made their way to the eighth floor.

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**A/N:** Thank you for the reviews

I have many faults as a writer and a couple of them really showed themselves in the last chapter. 1.) There are certain characters I take no pleasure in writing so I sometimes brush over them a bit carelessly and 2.) I get to a point sometimes when I'm done although the chapter might not be but I put up shop anyway. Thank you for reading despite my flaws.

JKR said of Sirius that he was 'too busy being a big rebel to get married.' I am slowly (hopefully) building a case for what happens when the necessity for rebellion is taken out of his hands and he is confronted with a worthy witch. We'll see if I can do what I have been aiming at.

I'd worry less about Hermione getting hurt than Sirius getting his ego bruised, repeatedly. His loyalty, once given is not something that Sirius would back lightly, I don't believe. It is one of his many charms for me. He has been a perfect ass to a woman that has entered his interest without him really realizing it. This is the situation that he has set up that I was referring to in my last chapters authors notes and it is most definitely not to his liking.

Sweet romantic Sirius is emerging. Give him time and I think he will amuse at what an utter ass he is willing to make of himself.

On Hermione, well...she has pretty good reason not to like him very much and if it is stereotypical then I apologize but she will not be falling over herself to get to him despite the fact that she is attracted to him.

What Sirius will do with himself is coming up plus a plot twist that will show itself after the Ministry and Shecklemeyer and Sons go public with Sirius' entrance in their world.


	8. Publicity

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of the characters, I just like to play with them.**

Publicity

A large panel of windows served as a wall in the conference room letting in a whitish, cloud filtered light. A long table took up most of the space with a compliment of comfortable, but unremarkable chairs.

Hermione had neglected to mention, or perhaps she didn't know, that the V.P. of Media Relations wasn't the only person waiting to meet the company's current source of discomfort.

Two wizards, introduced as being from the legal department, and a high ranking member of the Wizengamot, were also present. Sirius had already forgotten their names.

Actually, he was having trouble remembering his own. The figure which represented the settlement Shecklemeyer and Sons was willing to pay, finally impressed upon him the company's predicament. Perhaps there was some truth to the idea that he had been dealt a lucky hand, but what if his other future had been filled with utter bliss? It would be equally impossible to send him back.

All eyes were on him, tense and anxious to learn what his reaction would be.

"That's a fair bit of gold," he remarked casually, letting the parchment drop to the table. "But what if there are difficulties with my… adjustment, which this gold won't compensate."

"What sort of difficulties?" The question was posed by the elder of the two wizards from legal, his salt and pepper handlebar moustache quivering like an unfortunate squirrel.

Sirius shrugged. "What about health… problems, that might result my, uh, _participation_ in the experiment?" asked Sirius.

"Keep reading," replied the other, younger, wizard from legal.

Sirius looked back down at the parchment. Additional words had appeared, outlining more details to the settlement. Irritated, Sirius pulled out his wand and tapped the document which resisted his attempt for full disclosure. A bright spark of light leapt up from the parchment and a sharp pain in his wrist made him pull his hand back.

"What is the meaning of this?" Hermione took the words right out of his mouth. "This is not a negotiation. The only portion of this settlement that wasn't final was the sum of galleons." Hermione stood up and pointed to Sirius. "His welfare is this company's moral obligation!"

"Standard practice," defend the younger wizard from legal, a clean shaven blond with curly hair and dull eyes.

"Mr. Spinner," said Hermione crisply, turning to the representative from Media Relations. "Will you please explain the situation to these gentlemen?" Sirius repeated the name a few times in his head to remember it.

"I apologize," said Spinner, with a tight smile for Sirius. "The situation _was_ explained." He turned his gaze on the barristers from legal, a hard glint in his blue eyes. "Mr. Underbarrel , Mr. Overspeak, if you don't mind, please release all details in the settlement."

Hermione wasted no time flicking her wand at the parchment, sending it shooting across the table from in front of Sirius to the two wizards who were currently under such hard scrutiny. The wizards sat back in surprise over the abruptness of the maneuver.

"Highly irregular," muttered the older wizard as he tapped the parchment lightly with his wand. The parchment was sent across to Sirius once again. A smug grin tugged at the corner's of his mouth as he read.

It was easy to see why the legal department was so reluctant to offer such a rich settlement. Glancing up to look at Hermione who was flanked on one side Miss Hardfoot, the other by Mr. Hornbeam, he wondered how he would be treated if he didn't have such strong ties to her.

As soon as he had signed the document and copies were made, the legal representation took their leave, only too happy to get away from all of the disapproving stares.

"Sorry for that bit of unpleasantness," said Spinner to Sirius who merely shrugged. It had all turned out okay in the end. "Let us focus on the real reason we are all here." The wizard inclined his head to Hermione.

"Right," she said, standing. "Well, we are joined by Warlock Ogden to discuss which details should be released and which should not."

Ogden cleared his throat. "As much as we would like for there to be transparency in all dealings between the Ministry and the companies it contracts, we also see a potential security nightmare inherent in this accident. It is one matter to create a device to view past events with the clarity of a Pensieve and another to create a device that can bring forth wizards and witches whose natural life has ended."

"Voldemort," said Sirius, nodding with understanding. He frowned with impatience at the shudder that ran through everyone else at the table, even Hermione. "I hear from my godson that there are still Death Eaters at large."

"Exactly," said Ogden, giving Sirius a look like he had said a filthy word. His hand ran over the sparse white hair on his head. "The Wizengamot would like for the specific details regarding how this… accident came to be, destroyed."

"Is that necessary?" asked Hermione. "Our vaults have never been breached and this has been given the highest security that the company has to offer."

"And if the company ever fell into the wrong hands?" asked Sirius quietly. He could see by her expression that the thought itself was repugnant, however it had been a few years since the war had ended for her. He had just come off of the front lines and with Voldemort defeated, the idea of leaving a blatant trail that could be followed was ludicrous. It was asking for trouble.

"You said yourself that Shecklemeyer and Sons had been around forever and had a good reputation," said Hermione, focusing on remaining calm and logical.

"Any organization," said Sirius, giving her a severe look, his grey eyes pale like ice and just as hard, "that believes itself immune to infiltration or even a change in priorities, is being naïve."

"Are you suggesting-" began Hermione, anger creeping into her tone, but was interrupted by Sirius.

"Yes," said Sirius. "I _am_ suggesting that Shecklemeyer and Sons, while a good company with a good reputation could fall victim to the same sort of evil that overran the Ministry, that crept into an organization bent on doing good and still saw the death of two of its finest members." His tone outstripped hers for anger, rising emphatically to press his point home.

"Seeing as it was the Ministry that commissioned the calendar," said Spinner in a calm, diplomatic tone. "I suggest we follow their lead in this matter. The only documentation regarding this accident are the reports you three made, correct?"

"Yes, sir," said Hermione, looking away from Sirius with a sigh. Hardfoot and Hornbeam nodded their agreement.

"And who all know the specifics?" asked Ogden, looking relieved that the moment of tension was passing. "Who in company know how this happened?"

"Who doesn't?" asked Hornbeam, with a nervous glance at Sirius. "It spread like wildfire."

"Well," said Hermione, shaking her head. "Not exactly. The details of which projects were involved were classified immediately. What is known is that there were three projects involved but not which projects, how those individual projects worked or how they interacted to cause the accident."

"My project isn't that well known," added Miss Hardfoot. "I'm still very new and haven't made a name for myself and Potions are fairly underappreciated in the company." She gave Mr. Hornbeam a small smile.

"My potion wasn't named yet," added Hornbeam, fidgeting a little. "Potions don't get named until they're ready for mass production and then the name is nearly always decided in Marketing. None of that had happened yet."

"Hm," mused Spinner thoughtfully as he pulled some documents out of a brief. "Do any of you three have copies of this report at your desk?" Only Hermione nodded in the affirmative.

"Executive privilege," she said with a shrug. "My office is two floors up. We can collect the documents on the way to the press conference."

"Actually," said Spinner with a glance at his watch. "I'll need you to do that immediately after the press conference. Here is what I suggest; we won't include Hardfoot and Hornbeam in the press conference. We'll keep their name totally out of it and we'll just say that we can't explain why the calendar experiment produced the, uh, _results_, that it did."

This seemed to satisfy both Sirius and Ogden.

"Alright," said Spinner, smiling at Hardfoot and Hornbeam. "You two are dismissed. Remember that this matter is classified with the highest priority and can be discussed with no one."

Ogden got to his feet. "I think I'll leave you to it then." He walked around the table, his eyes on Sirius, who stood realizing the man wanted to shake his hand. "I didn't agree with your incarceration without a trial," he said, claiming Sirius' hand in a firm shake. "I don't want to meddle in your business, but this is a rare second chance most people don't get. Use it wisely, son." Sirius nodded and returned the handshake with an equal grip.

Spinner walked Ogden to the door, conversing quietly with the aged wizard.

"So…" said Sirius, with an eye on Spinner and Ogden. "No mention of the fact that a certain household is full of folks with details about the accident."

"They're all Order members and therefore trustworthy," replied Hermione mildly but he swore he could see a faint blush rise in her cheeks. "Can you think of any people less likely to bring You-Know-Who back from the dead?"

"I suppose not," he conceded and smiled slyly. "Still an interesting move for the goody-goody 'company girl'.

"So what are you going to say about the accident?" asked Spinner, interrupting the heated retort to Sirius' jibe.

"Not much," replied Hermione, throwing a dark look at Sirius. "I plan to keep the focus on Sirius."

"Are you ready, then?" asked Spinner, with an encouraging smile.

Hermione nodded and began to gather her things.

"What about you, Sirius?" asked Spinner.

"Can't wait," replied Sirius wryly as he got to his feet.

"Excellent!" Spinner walked to the conference room door and held it open for Sirius and Hermione before leading them to an office with a Floo connection with the Ministry.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

With the press conference over, Hermione gave herself a moment to collect her thoughts as Spinner acted as Sirius' handler. As they made their way back to the Atrium so they could return to Shecklemeyer and Sons, their progress was continuously slowed by curious witches and wizards.

A lot of witches noted Hermione darkly.

However this was not what was most surprising about their trek back the way they had come. What was involved the amount of attention she was receiving from wizards she barely knew and the affect it had on Sirius. He seemed caught between being amused and annoyed by the development.

They were stopped at the moment by a couple of Aurors she knew by sight but not by name. She feigned interest in the conversation, apparently something about Sirius setting himself up in some sort of freelance work that had something to do with Death Eater capture or getting evidence through non Ministry channels. She wasn't trying to follow too closely, especially since she wasn't sure it sounded entirely legal.

"Hermione Granger?" A voice she distantly recalled tugged the rest of the attention away from whatever it was Sirius was currently scheming. She turned to face the owner of the voice and broke into a huge smile.

"Oliver Wood!" She wasn't sure what the appropriate polite thing to do was so bounced up on the balls of her feet and gave him a little friendly peck on the cheek. His responding smile was wondrous.

"I haven't seen you since… you know." He sounded delighted despite the fact he was referencing the Battle of Hogwarts. "You look…" he trailed off losing his connection with her eyes, "…absolutely fantastic!"

Hermione blushed but smiled, quite pleased with his admiration even if she wasn't quite sure what to do with it. "You're looking good yourself, Oliver." It was an understatement if there ever was one. Wood had always been muscular and a few years of maturation looked excellent on him.

Wood's chest puffed out proudly and he gave her a little wink. "I don't suppose you'd be interested in going to dinner with me tonight."

"That sounds lovely," said Hermione before she could stop herself.

"Great!" said Wood beaming. "How does seven thirty sound? I'll pick you up, tell me where you live."

"Actually," said Hermione. "I'm certain to be at the office until then. Could we meet somewhere?" Wood smiled and wrote the name and address of a restaurant on a piece of parchment torn from the Daily Prophet he was holding.

"I'll see you then," he said smiling and then bravely returned her earlier gesture with a kiss on the cheek. "You actually looked a little busy but I'm really glad I stopped to talk to you." Hermione had forgotten all about Sirius in the space of just a few minutes.

"Oh, right," she said in a bit of daze and looked over at Sirius. For some reason he didn't look very happy at all. He was still talking to the Aurors but a little muscle in his cheek kept clenching up tightly. "Bye, Oliver."

"See you tonight, Hermione," said Wood as he left.

The Aurors concluded their business with Sirius just as Oliver left Hermione. The three of them with Spinner slightly in the lead continued their trek to the Atrium.

"Was that Oliver Wood of Puddlemere United?" asked Spinner, slowing down to break up the silence.

"Oh, yeah," said Hermione with a little smile.

Sirius grumbled a sound but she couldn't make the words out.

"I'm sorry, Sirius," she said. "I didn't catch that."

"Nothing," he replied. "Just clearing my throat."

"What did Wood want?" asked Spinner as they walked into the vast room lined with Floo connections.

"Um," said Hermione, with a slight blush. "A date actually."

"Well, that's splendid!" said Spinner, oblivious to Sirius' darkening demeanor.

"You don't need me anymore from me, right?" asked Sirius brusquely. "I think I'd like to return home."

"Hermione?" asked Spinner. "Do you need anymore from Sirius today?"

Hermione shook her head as she tried to gauge the reason for Sirius' sour temperament. "I don't think so. Are you alright, Sirius?"

"Fine," he said abruptly. "See you later." He was gone without another word.

"What was his problem?" asked Hermione as she stepped into the Floo connection.

"Well, if I had to hazard a guess," said Spinner with a knowing smile. "I'd say jealousy."

The Floo activated before Hermione could respond.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Hermione was officially irritated by the time she reached her floor. With all of the attention Sirius was receiving from the opposite sex he could hardly begrudge her a dinner out with an old friend. Why was he jealous anyway? They were nothing to each other in any sort of romantic sense. There were a few dozen things she would like to say to him. None of them were over friendly.

The company was predictably empty for a Saturday afternoon. What little work was conducted on the weekends would have concluded before noon and it was well past that now. There was no one to interrupt her dark train of thinking as she walked the hallway to her office, muttering to herself under her breath.

As a result, she was blithely unaware of any disturbances or changes until she was right in front of her office door, which, as it happens, was blown off its hinges and resting almost broken in half across her desk.

"Oh, shit!" she cursed quietly as she swiftly drew her wand.

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**A/N**: Thank you for all of the lovely reviews.

I have not forgotten or abandoned this fic although I'll say quite honestly it was the reviews that spurred me to finally write the next chapter. Especially the one about not letting this story rot in abandoned fic hell. I chuckled a little at that one. This chapter was a little short but the set up is, I do believe, now complete.

I hope you enjoy it and don't forget to review. It is what keeps me writing!


	9. Sabotage

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of the characters, I just like to play with them**

Sabotage

Breath held and body motionless, Hermione gripped her wand in a trembling hand. She couldn't hear anything that sounded like human intruders, but knew her first priority would be to call for help.

Closing her eyes, she summoned to mind how beautiful, light and feminine she felt as Viktor carried her around the dance floor the night of the Yule Ball. Her focused mind didn't allow Ron's prat behavior to intrude on her happy memory of finally being the pretty girl, envied and admired by her peers.

With a whispered incantation and a message in mind, light burst from the tip of her wand. Three otters, each with a different destination, filled the hallway with their bright light before vanishing through the walls. One went to Harry, another went to Shecklemeyer and the last went to Sirius.

Harry would bring a contingent of Aurors to investigate the crime, Shecklemeyer needed to know for obvious reasons and she felt that as the only person to have benefitted from the magical accident, Sirius' life might be in danger.

With cautious and quiet steps, Hermione approached the door, noting the scorch marks on the jamb. She flicked her wand at the space where the door had been, testing for any residual magic or perhaps even traps.

"I wonder how angry Harry would be if I entered the crime scene," she mused softly. A sound from the other end of the office, the soft whine of a door hinge followed by a click, alerted her to the fact that someone had opened and closed the door that led to the receptionist's office. A single pair of heavy feet pounded down the hallway toward her office.

Not taking anything for granted, even the possibility of a very loud repeat offender, Hermione scampered behind a coat rack tucked into a shadowy corner. She considered performing a Disillusionment Charm on herself but the visitor pulled into view, revealing himself to be a friend, not a foe.

Well, sort of.

"Hermione," said Sirius, between gulps of breath, his chest heaving. "Are you still here?"

"Yes, I'm here," she said without bothering to hide her annoyance.

"I got your Patronus," he said hesitantly, apparently confused by her tone. His eyes swept over her face and body to assess any damage to her person, before approaching the door with his wand raised. "I thought you were in danger."

"No," she said, with a roll of her eyes. "I was trying to let you know that _you_ might be in danger." She brushed past him to her office to resume testing the doorway.

"Don't," said Sirius, with a hand on her upper arm. "Why would I be danger?"

"Get your hands off me, Sirius," said Hermione, as she gave her arm a shake to dislodge him. He immediately released her and raised his hands in surrender.

"I'm not trying to force myself on you," he said, aggravated with a slight rise in the volume of his voice. "I might not play Quidditch professionally but I still get along just fine without having to resort to that."

"Oh my god," said Hermione, giving him an enlightened, scrutinizing look. She took a step toward him and the repeated herself. "Oh my god."

"What?" Sirius' tone was defensive and confused, his eyes cautious and wary.

"Oh. My. God." She continued to advance on him, raising her finger to point as she as she drew nearer. "You unbelievable arse!" Sirius took a step back, moving away from her, unsure what exactly had set her off.

"First, you make crass and lewd accusations of me, accusations, mind you, which have never been made before." Sirius kept retreating from her, unsure how to diffuse the situation, alarmed by the stress in her voice and the fact that it just kept getting louder. And shriller. "You insinuate that I – I – I want your _body_…" She made a dismissive gesture at him with her hand. "That I'm just _dying_ for it. You embarrass me in front of friends, get me drunk so I'll reveal details that I'd rather die than have generally known." Hermione stopped gesturing and paused to give him a hard look. "Then, after all of that you think a little apology gives you the right to be _jealous_?"

"You're barking," said Sirius stiffly.

"Really?" she said sarcastically with a feral grin. "So what did that little Quidditch player comment mean, huh?"

"Just that apparently you're not too goody goody as long as the bloke happens to play professionally," said Sirius, a touch of superiority curled his upper lip.

"Oh, I see," she said with mock seriousness and dripping sarcasm. "So tell me then, who is it that I _am_ too goody goody for?"

Sirius froze. Hermione watched with supreme satisfaction as a number of emotions; fear and embarrassment among them, crossed his handsome face. A triumphant gloating grin turned up the corners of her mouth in a wide smile.

Before she was able to comment on the corner she had him in, the receptionists door opened again, followed by a number of male voices. Hermione met Sirius' eyes in one last victorious moment, letting him know he had not heard the last word just yet.

"Bloody hell, Hermione!" said Ron as he and Harry approached the pair. "I thought we'd never find your office." They were followed in by a few other wizards dressed in Auror's robes.

"If you had actually read the legend downstairs, instead of charging up to 'storm the castle' we could have saved ourselves at least ten wasted minutes," grumbled Harry with a slight grin for Ron before giving Hermione a quick once over. "Are you alright."

Hermione almost commented that Sirius hadn't any trouble finding her new office, but that would be too much like encouragement for the great git. Instead she just nodded, "What ever happened, it must have taken place during the press conference."

"Hey there, Sirius," said Harry. "Did you escort her back?"

"I'm going in, Harry," said Ron from the doorway.

"Excuse me for a moment," said Harry, before either Sirius or Hermione could comment on Harry's question.

Hermione glanced at her watch, wondering what was taking Shecklemeyer so long. The man standing to the left of her, however, misinterpreted her motive.

"Typical," he said derisively and moved away to better listen to what Harry and Ron were saying.

"What is that supposed to men?" asked Hermione, following to keep up and then quickened her steps to move around in front of him, where she stood, hands on her hips.

"Nothing," he replied to her, and then addressed Harry over her head. "Find anything interesting Harry?"

A different door, one used by employees, which led from a stairwell landing that also had an access to the lift, opened and closed, followed by the voice of Mr. Shecklemeyer.

"By my office," called out Hermione.

"Great Merlin's robes," said Shecklemeyer, as he peered into her office from a safe distance. "Are you alright, my dear?"

"I'm fine," she assured. "But this is rather concerning."

"Damn right it is," said Sirius severely. "I'm not sure how this could have been avoided entirely but going public with Hermione named as the researcher involved has placed her in danger."

Shecklemeyer quirked an eyebrow at Sirius curiously for his apparent vehemence.

"Why don't we wait to hear what the Aurors have to say before jumping to that conclusion," sniped Hermione huffily.

Harry stepped out of her office with a concerned frown. He gave Shecklemeyer a brief greeting before getting to the point.

"The wards that were guarding the door seem to have been pretty standard executive security measures," began Harry. "Am I right about that?"

Hermione nodded. "I've never used extra security for the door."

"The door was blown off," continued Harry. "It took them a little effort-"

"Them?" interrupted Sirius.

Harry nodded. "We're finding two distinct magical signatures."

"Merlin's saggy left ball," said Sirius with a tinge of awe, ignoring Hermione's disapproving tutting. "That's new."

Harry nodded. "Very, actually. We aren't able to make an identification by it, at least not one that will stand up in court, but we can get an idea for the number of suspects we're looking for."

Harry paused to see if any of them wanted to add something before continuing on. "The door hit the back wall as indicated by a sizeable dent, after which the suspects turned their attention to your desk. We have been able to ascertain that a variety of spells, curses and we think even a potion were used in an attempt to destroy the desk."

"Destroy?" asked Sirius, puzzled.

"It doesn't make sense to us either," replied Harry. "Our first thought was that somehow Death Eaters got a hold of the information about your dimensional jump and moved on it immediately, but after looking at the crime scene we think it is more likely that it was someone inside the company who was trying to destroy Hermione's work."

"Jealousy?" asked Shecklemeyer, his expression grave.

"We don't know that yet," answered Harry. "There is some damage to her filing cabinet but it's rather half-hearted and seems almost more for show than anything else."

"Harry!" called Ron, a note of urgency in his voice.

"Excuse me again," said Harry.

Hermione watched him return to her office with a furrowed brow. Shecklemeyer took a few cautious steps to follow Harry, leaving Hermione alone with Sirius. When she glanced at his face, he was observing her with a solemn expression.

"What?" she snapped defensively.

"I don't know exactly what is going on here," he said quietly. "But I think you are in a bit of danger."

Hermione looked away as she recalled his words from earlier that morning. What in the hell was going on here? Professional sabotage? Here? It was a preposterous notion to her, but the evidence seemed to point away from a grand evil plot to something much more mundane. And sad.

And yes, even dangerous.

A commotion in her office drew her attention to the fact that all of the Aurors were suddenly clearing out. Harry and Ron were speaking with Shecklemeyer as they hurried back toward Sirius and Hermione.

"Well?" she asked, referring to their expressions.

"We detected a curse on your desk. It's triggered by the removal of the door. We almost didn't catch it," said Harry. "It's unlikely that it would have caused you any harm, but it would have reduced your desk to ash. Still might."

"What?" said Hermione alarmed.

"We've called in an experienced Curse Breaker," said Ron with a grin. Hermione relaxed just a little.

"Someone you know personally?" asked Sirius curiously.

"My brother actually," replied Ron. "My oldest brother. He's a Curse Breaker for Gringotts."

"Speaking of Ron's family," said Harry, with a slight grin. "I'm supposed to invite you to a party in your honor, Sirius, tomorrow at the Burrow."

"The Burrow?" said Sirius slowly, trying to work out what that could mean.

"My parents home," replied Ron easily. "Ginny said to warn you mum's gone a little overboard."

"Over compensating," said Harry with a small cough.

Sirius looked confused but didn't comment on it. The grins being shared between Ron, Harry and Hermione were a little smug.

"Guess who I saw earlier," said Hermione, sneaking a sly look at Sirius. The atmosphere between the three friends had moved into genuine camaraderie.

"Hm?" asked Harry, with a glance at Sirius who had stiffened considerably.

"Is this really the appropriate time for gossip?" asked the irritated Animagus. "Shouldn't we be discussing plans for keeping her safe?"

"We don't really think her safety is an issue," answered Ron, giving Sirius a penetrating look, like there was something he felt he should understand but didn't. "From what we can tell, nothing has been aimed at harming her person. The perpetrators chose a time when they knew she wouldn't be here and set a trap that isn't aimed at maiming or killing her. They've gone out of their way to make it look like something more nefarious, but none of the evidence points to that as being the truth."

"How can you be so sure?" demanded Sirius hotly. "What if that's a part of their plan, to lure you into a sense of comfort?"

"There is nothing more important to us than her safety," said Harry quietly to Sirius, before turning to Hermione. "So, who did you see?"

"Oliver Wood!" answered Hermione with a brilliant smile. She glanced at her watch. "I'm meeting him for dinner in a half an hour."

"A date?" asked Harry, surprised but pleased. His eyes darted to Sirius and he just couldn't help the smirk.

"You're still going?" asked Sirius, alarmed. "What if you're followed? What if someone tries to accost you?"

Ron shifted uncomfortably. "Sirius has a point, Hermione. Maybe you should postpone until we can accurately assess that curse on your desk."

Harry chuckled quietly and gave Hermione a sympathetic smile. "I'm sure that Hermione can handle a date on her own, Ron. The evidence just doesn't support a direct threat."

"Thank you, Harry," said Hermione, looking very much like the cat that caught the canary.

The receptionist door opened and closed once more, turning their heads toward the sound, they watched as Bill Weasley approached. When he spotted Sirius his grin widened.

"I just couldn't believe it when I heard the news," he said, still handsome despite the scarring which gave him a rather rugged appearance. "Sirius Black! Welcome back, man!"

Sirius shook Bill's hand and let himself be drawn into a manly, one-armed hug.

"Sorry," said Bill, with an uncharacteristically sheepish smile. "I know you don't know me, but I always thought well of you."

Before Sirius could respond, Bill's attention was caught by Hermione and her new look.

"Well, well, well," said Bill, with obvious admiration. "Look who's all grown up."

Hermione flushed and then scowled but before she could admonish him, Bill had continued on.

"Look's like you're a bigger fool than I thought," said Bill lightly to Ron.

Hermione snapped her lips shut and put a tight lid on the little smile that was threatening to break out across her face.

"So, Harry," said Bill. "What can I do for you?"

"You enjoyed that," accused Sirius in a mild teasing tone as Bill and Harry walked to Hermione's office with a trailing Ron.

"Boys," said Hermione, to Harry and Ron, ignoring Sirius entirely. "I'm off to meet Oliver."

Harry waved and wished her a good time, while Ron seemed not have heard. As she walked to the employee stairwell, she imagined she could feel a pair of grey eyes burning into her backside.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Hermione let Oliver walk her up to the front steps of number twelve, Grimmauld Place. After hearing about the break in at her work, he was genuinely concerned for her safety. Her cloak was pulled tightly around her body to shield against the biting cold of the London night air.

Oliver had been completely charming and a perfect gentleman. As they climbed the steps to the door, however, Hermione had a moment of panic. Should she kiss him? Did she even want to? Did he? What if her breath was still garlicky from the bread?

"Would you like to come in for a cup of tea?" she blurted out, attempting to evade the presumed requisite intimacy.

"Teas sounds lovely," said Oliver smoothly. There was a hint of something she hadn't seen in his smile all night, something that reminded her of a predatory lion stalking a wildebeest on those nature programs her father loved.

As she turned the knob, the realization hit her that in this scenario, she was said wildebeest.

_How unflattering!_

Voices filtered up softly from the kitchen, which gave her a reason to grin as Oliver helped her out of her cloak. Although unplanned, her idea to invite him in actually worked to her favor. There would be little room for romance in a house full of Quidditch loving fools.

"Who's here?" asked Oliver, as she led him down the steps into the basement.

"My housemates," replied Hermione. "Some you know, like Harry ad Ginny, others you might not, like Remus and Dora Lupin and Sirius Black."

"Brilliant!" said Oliver, with a genuine smile. "I haven't seen Harry in ages."

When they entered the kitchen, she discovered that they were playing host to a few extra Weasleys as well.

"Wood!" exclaimed Harry, getting to his feet with a large smile. "Great to see you!"

Oliver was greeted and hugged and playfully punched by Fred, George and Bill, while Ginny tugged at Hermione's hand, making her sit and answer an exhaustive list of hissed questions about her date. Oliver was introduced to Remus, Tonks and Sirius and then was subjected to a barrage of Quidditch related questions involving the strengths and weaknesses of this or that team.

Hermione absently murmured answers about where they had gone, what they had talked about and whether or not she'd had fun with Oliver.

Catching up with old friends had taken precedence over whatever had been on Oliver's mind when they had entered the house. As she watched the handsome Quidditch player describe a new move he had recently seen, Hermione caught the furtive questioning glances thrown at her by Ron. After three years and four girlfriends, it was hard to believe he still felt a touch possessive over her.

"Ron and Sirius were in a right foul mood before you got here," said Ginny, watching Oliver's hands twist and rise in demonstration.

"You'd think after all the dates you've set me on he'd have gotten past it by now," remarked Hermione.

Ginny shook her head. "This is different. I didn't have to threaten you into this date, you got it all on your own."

Hermione considered that for a moment as Harry got to his feet and made a few intricate gestures with his hands, seeking clarification on some point.

"Ron's still a bit sulky, but look at Sirius, he looks like the cat who got into the cream," said Ginny, drawing Hermione's attention to the very satisfied grin Sirius was wearing."

"That can't be good," commented Hermione dryly. "I wonder what that's about."

Sirius did indeed look very smug and rather amused about something that had couldn't possibly have anything to do with Quidditch.

Bill was the first to take his leave, followed by the twins. Harry and Hermione walked Oliver to the door, with Harry seeming to be blessedly ignorant of the ritual of the kiss good night. With so much going on, Oliver had not properly secured follow up plans for a second date and Harry never shut up long enough to give Oliver an opportunity. After ten minutes of conversation in the hallway by the front door, Oliver finally gave up and left. When Hermione and Harry returned to the kitchen, Remus and Tonks were offering their 'good nights'.

"Bill removed the curse with no damage to your desk," said Ron as Hermione fixed a cup of tea for herself, something Oliver had never actually been offered.

"I knew he would," said Hermione, as she sat down. "I wouldn't have left if I were at all concerned."

"We should be finished with our investigation by tomorrow afternoon," said Harry. "Can you stay away that long?"

"Sure," replied Hermione. "I need to write letters of interest to my staff picks anyway, get it of the way."

"We're pretty sure that what we're looking for is someone who wants to get rid of your calendar and had privileged information about when the best time to strike would be," continued Harry. "Does any name jump out at you?"

"No," said Hermione honestly. "No one."

Harry sighed like he expected that answer. "We'll need a list of who knew what your whereabouts would be at the time of the attack, then."

"We're also sure that harming you wasn't part of the plan," added Ron and reached across the table to squeeze her hand. They exchanged a smile and then Ron announced he needed to get home.

"I'm tired," said Ginny as Harry sat next to Sirius. "Can you finish that tomorrow?"

Harry gave his wife a little smile and a nod before turning back to Sirius. "We'll talk tomorrow about that freelance stuff."

"Sure thing," assured Sirius, with a smile as he dove a hand through his black locks.

Hermione bid Harry and Ginny good night as she walked to the sink with her cup and saucer.

"Good night, Sirius," she said, mostly out of politeness.

"Your little plan worked pretty well, didn't it?" said Sirius rhetorically, with a note of something fat and satisfied in his tone.

"What are you on about?" asked Hermione, pausing in the doorway to throw Sirius a derisive look.

"I bet poor Oliver couldn't believe his luck when you invited him in," continued Sirius. "He'd have been better off pressing for that kiss good night at the door than getting stuck with a bunch of Quidditch nuts."

Hermione pressed her lips together in a thin line, her temper swelling over his impudence and the fact that he was right. She didn't bother saying that Oliver had a lot of good friends in this house because clearly, Sirius knew that. The point he was making didn't really have that much to with Oliver, actually.

Sirius got to his feet, his gaze intense and fixed on her as he practically prowled over to her. Hermione tried to swallow but found that her throat was tight and dry. Each step Sirius took in her direction seemed to heighten the thrum of her heart beat in her ears. She needed to flee but found she hadn't the wits to manage it.

Sirius stopped, maintaining an appropriate physical boundary, while getting as close as he dared. He looked down at her with a little smile but his eyes were the same, intense and fixed on her, the color of a storm over the ocean.

"Bill was right about Ron," said Sirius. "Any man who let go of a creature with as much fire as you've got is a complete imbecile, and even worse than that, he never showed you what that was about."

Hermione stopped breathing.

"I like Wood," admitted Sirius. "But I doubt he'd be any different from Ron, really. They all have this idea about who you are and for whatever reason," Sirius let his voice drop an octave, "that doesn't include having certain… needs, passion, just like any other woman."

Hermione thought she could go up in flames from his words alone. How did he see so much?

"Please stop," she whispered.

"One kiss, Hermione," said Sirius, his voice rumbling just above a whisper now. "That's all I need. One kiss and I'll show you what you're all about." For a moment, not even a full second, she thought she saw him lean in. If he had, he thought better of it and paused, but his eyes were still locked on hers, testing and challenging before releasing her and walking away.

She listened to the sound of his heavy steps on the stairs as her lungs filled with air once again.


	10. Avoidance

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of the characters, I just like to play with them**

Avoidance

Dressed warmly in a pair of jeans and crimson jumper with dark grey woolen robes thrown over for added warmth, Hermione tiptoed down the stairs at number twelve, Grimmauld Place, intent on leaving before she had to interact with one of the residents in particular. She left by Floo to visit Molly under the pretense of wanting a little quiet to work in and to help out with party preparation where she could. The truth, of course, was that she had no idea how to negotiate her next encounter with Sirius. For one brief moment she had wanted him to kiss her. _Him! Merlin, what a mistake that would have been!_

Molly was alone as Arthur had gone in early to the Ministry, and was still in her house robes with a few curlers in her hair. Refusing to hear of Hermione's offer for help, she situated the younger witch at the kitchen table while she made preparations. They each worked on their respective tasks in companionable silence for several hours, with only the normal sounds of the Burrow acting as an accompaniment.

"I'm curious why you didn't just use the library at your house, dear," said Molly, breaking the silence as she pulled a cake pan out of the oven. "Not that I mind the company, just surprised."

Hermione looked up from the letter she was writing and watched Molly insert a new pan of batter to bake. "Well, I did think you would let me be at least a little bit useful."

"Nonsense, dear," said Molly fussily as she closed the oven door. "After Bill and Fleur's wedding, everything is easy."

Hermione made a noncommittal little noise of agreement and turned back to her letter. As the pen scratched out the words inviting Cecilia Hardfoot to be a member of her team, Hermione replayed the scene from the night before. Sirius was quite compelling in his intensity, his grey eyes focused on hers, able to keep her in place with only the force of his gaze. Hermione looked down at the letter to discover she had written Sirius' name.

"Damn," she muttered quietly.

"Everything alright?" asked Molly, as she sifted flour into a bowl for yet another layer in Sirius' welcome home cake.

"Just a little mistake," said Hermione darkly. With a light flick of her wand she removed his name from the parchment. "There, all better. If only everything were so easy."

"To what are you referring?" asked Molly curiously, as she cracked an egg over the bowl.

"Nothing really," lied Hermione, as she dipped her quill into the pot of ink and watched as the excess dripped off in fat black tears.

"So tell me," said Molly, her voice warbled slightly as she furiously whipped the batter with a wire whisk. "How is he adjusting?"

"You do that the Muggle way?" asked Hermione. There was a note of surprise in her tone.

"Magic doesn't know when the batter is just right," replied Molly, still whisking.

Hermione smiled at that and then went back to her letter writing. Molly took a few steps to the cooler, opened the door and plunked the bowl of batter in and then went to the sink to wash her hands.

"It can't be easy on him, you know," began the Weasley matriarch, drying her hands on her apron as she took a seat at the table with Hermione. "I can't even begin to think how you would cope." A few moments of silence passed and Hermione could feel Molly's eyes on her face.

"What has Ginny told you?" asked Hermione quietly.

"Ginny?" said Molly, a bit surprised. "Well, she explained more than I could actually understand about how he got here and she also told me that Harry took Sirius to see James and Lily…" Molly trailed off. "Oh, and I think there was some business at the Ministry and Gringotts."

"And that's it?" asked Hermione suspiciously.

"Yes, I believe that covers it," said Molly, but the slight rise in the tone of her voice suggested she wasn't being entirely truthful. "I felt so bad for how poorly I treated Sirius while he was alive after he had that dreadful fall."

"I'm sure he had some of it coming," said Hermione darkly and without sympathy.

"If the circumstances were different, Harry would have gone straight to Sirius after James and Lily died," said Molly. "I had no right to behave the way I did."

"So Ginny didn't mention anything else?" asked Hermione. She really wasn't in the mood to be sympathetic to Sirius.

"Well," began Molly, but was interrupted by the creaking of the back door as it opened.

"Hello, Mum!" said Ginny brightly, the brisk November air sneaking in behind her. "Oh! So here is where you snuck off to, Hermione. Harry was hoping to get that list of names from you before you left. We knew you wouldn't be at work after the break in-"

"Break in," said Molly sharply. "What break in?"

"My new office was broken into," explained Hermione. "Apparently the culprit is someone in the company. They tried to destroy the calendar."

"Did you see them?" asked Molly worriedly. "You weren't hurt were you?"

"No, we have no idea who did it and no, they were gone by the time I got back to the office," replied Hermione, giving Molly's hand a pat to reassure her.

"Harry and Sirius left for your office about a half an hour ago," said Ginny, scooting her chair closer to Hermione. "Did something happen after Harry and I went to bed?"

"Why?" said Hermione sharply. "Did he say something?"

Ginny grinned like a Cheshire cat. "I had a feeling he had something up his sleeve. He was downright surly until you came in last night from your date with Oliver."

"Hermione Granger!" said Molly indignantly, banging the flat of her palm against the table. "You have been here for hours and you didn't mention a break in or that you had a date!"

Ginny nudged Hermione's arm. "Tell me! What happened last night? When Sirius heard you had already left you should have seen the smile on his face! It was downright devilish!"

"He's pursuing her?" asked Molly, with a smug grin. Ginny held a finger up to her mother.

"Did he kiss you?" asked Ginny eagerly, leaning in.

"He most certainly did not!" cried Hermione indignantly.

"Well, something happened," said Ginny. "That much I'm sure of."

"You said Harry and Sirius left?" asked Hermione briskly, as she gathered her parchment into a neat stack, banging first one end sharply and then the other until the pile of paper was perfect. The sling on her purse was lifted off the corner of her chair and slung onto her shoulder as she stood.

"You're leaving?" asked Ginny in disbelief. "Oh, please stay, Hermione. Don't be so bloody sensitive."

"I'm not," snapped Hermione, as she stepped away from the table. "I just have all these letters to write and I'm not getting it done here."

"You're coming back for the party, aren't you?" asked Molly anxiously, as she watched Hermione step up to fireplace. The only answer she got was a curt nod before Hermione was gone.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Chickens in the yard scattered, a few feathers lost in their scuttle amid angry squawking, as Harry, Ron and Sirius Apparated into the front yard at the Burrow. The scene was quaint and pastoral. Peaceful. The rickety house that came closer into view was swaying precariously in a light breeze which made Sirius smile.

Voices from around a corner pricked up his ears as he listened for one person in particular. As they approached the house, Sirius was vaguely aware of Ron trying to make some sort of justification for his mother.

They followed the sounds of the voices which grew louder indicating that there were a fair few in attendance. Just as they reached the corner of the house, an older woman, short, with a kind face and brilliant red hair nearly ran smack into them.

Molly Weasley gasped in surprise and then threw her arms around Sirius' neck, giving him a tremendous hug.

"It's so good to have you back," she hissed sweetly in his ear.

Sirius liked her immediately.

"Sirius, this is my mum," said Ron, as his mother released the Animagus.

"Molly Weasley," she said, a slight flush in her face. "Sorry about that."

"No, it's quite alright," said Sirius with a wide grin, flashing his pearly whites. "I wish all the pretty girls greeted me that way."

"Oh, you!" said Molly indulgently, very nearly giggling, as she gave his arm a playful slap. "Well, you're just a charmer, aren't you?"

Sirius chuckled warmly. "Speaking of pretty girls-"

"Say no more," said Molly, putting her hand up. "She's here but be warned, she's in quite a mood."

"Ah, well. That's just how I like her," said Sirius with a cheeky grin. "Where is she?"

"So you're back to fancying her, then?" asked Ron irritably.

"Ron," said Molly, her voice sharp. "Give me a hand in the kitchen. Harry, you and Sirius relax out back," she continued, giving Sirius a significant look. "It's a lovely day given the season."

Ron opened his mouth to protest but shut it when he caught his mother's glare.

A tiny squeal rang out as they approached the back yard, followed by the sound of small feet in the undergrowth.

"Hexing the gnomes?" asked Harry curiously.

"It was a girl gnome batting her eyes and generally making a fool of herself to a boy gnome," replied Hermione without looking up. She was sitting on a bench at a long wooden table that overlooked the garden. She was at the end closest to Harry and Sirius, looking aggravated, while Remus and Tonks sat at the other end. "It was for her own good."

"Can't let anyone have a little fun, can you?" teased Sirius, smirking as she startled. Her head popped around with narrowed eyes glaring at him.

"Don't mind her," said Ginny, as she came forward with a large smile. A crowd of people she had just been mingling with watched curiously as she greeted Sirius and Harry. "She's been _delightful _all day."

"That's too bad, Granger," said Sirius in mock sincerity. "Anything I can do to help cheer you up."

"I'm perfectly fine as I am, thank you," she said primly, straightening her spine. "I do not require your assistance."

"Suit yourself," said Sirius mildly, as his steps took him behind her seat. A low chuckle emanated from him as he passed by. She was sitting even straighter, stiff as board now, avidly watching his every move with heavy suspicion.

"Do you have any news on the break in, Harry?" asked Hermione, once Sirius was safely past her and walking toward Ginny.

"Come on Sirius," said Ginny, with her hand outstretched. "There are some friendlier people over here. I don't know what got into her, but perhaps it's best to just let her be." Sirius turned to watch Harry sit between Hermione and Tonks accepting Ginny's hand.

When they had taken a few steps out of Hermione's hearing range, Ginny whispered, "She'll come around."

"Of that," said Sirius, with a confident, lazy grin. "I am absolutely certain."

Ginny gave his hand a squeeze and let it go as they approached the group of people in the small yard. Sirius felt a vague recollection, almost like _déjà vu_, until he neared and realized it was actually memory. A memory of these same people in a different back yard, only for him it was a few months prior, for them… a lifetime ago.

There was the smiling face of Kingsley, Dedalus, Hestia, Mad Eye and…

_Oh, god._

Emmeline.

"Well, well, well," said Vance, with an appreciative smirk. "Look who it is, the man of the hour."

From halfway across the yard there was a quiet feminine snort.

"'Lo, Em," said Sirius quietly, shocked to see his teenage crush standing in front of him, a distinguished but somewhat portly wizard had his arm around Vance's waist. It was sure to be her husband. Despite her twenty plus extra years, she was still a striking witch.

"Its Emmeline, Sirius," said the older witch. "I can't believe you still haven't learned my name."

As she spoke, Sirius realized something important, whatever he had felt for Emmeline, paled in comparison to the growing emotion he felt for Hermione. It was startling to think that he could develop feelings for the witch in the space of three days. While this had started somewhere very different, in misinterpreting his playfulness on her part and feeling challenged by her on his, for Sirius it was rapidly going somewhere altogether new. And apparently he was going there alone. Sirius' lack of response created an oddly long and somewhat uncomfortable pause before Dedalus piped up in his squeaky voice.

"Emmeline was just telling us that she heard known Death Eaters were seen harassing someone, in _London_ no less. Unfortunately we don't have anymore details at the moment."

"It was a false report, made by a witness and not the victim," said Harry, who, Sirius noted, had walked over and left Hermione alone with Remus and Tonks. "A case of mistaken identity. The wizard harassed was none other than Cornelius Fudge, who told the investigating Auror that it wasn't even a wizard much less a Death Eater. Just some Muggle, early twenties, wearing a dark trench coat. Apparently he tried to mug Fudge."

Hestia chuckled. "Really? That was a bad move. Did Fudge report him to the Muggle authorities?"

"No," said Harry. "Apparently Fudge Obliviated the Muggle and went on his way."

"Is that, I don't know, standard practice?" asked Emmeline

"There is no such thing with Fudge," grumbled Harry.

"May I have your attention," called out Molly. A veritable throng of red heads carrying various trays and platters followed out behind her. Sirius grinned widely as Harry gave him a shove forward. A table cloth had been spread on the table where Hermione had been sitting, although the witch herself was nowhere to be seen.

As a few people spoke words about how wonderful it was to have him back, Sirius could only wonder where Hermione had gone. He wanted to see her pretty face, even if it was only to scowl disapprovingly at him. The smile he stuck on his face was genuine and he did enjoy the food but at his very earliest opportunity he excused himself by asking Molly where the bathroom was.

She told him and then added, "Hermione is one floor up from there, first door on the right."

Sirius grinned wickedly at Molly.

"You're fairly mischievous, you know that?" he said, praise thick in his tone.

Molly snorted. "No, I just had a hand in the raising of Fred and George."

At that Sirius gave her a puzzled look. Molly just smiled and shook her head. "Those are stories for another time. Go get your witch."

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Ginny's old room still donned the poster's of the Weird Sisters and Gwenog Jones. Hermione was curled in a little ball of misery in the center of the tiny bed. There were tears just behind her eyes, she could feel the heat but couldn't release them. Snakes that had taken up residence in her belly by the feel of it, and were on the move, and multiplying. She had never felt more miserable.

She was sulking and she knew it, and that made her even more unhappy.

'_One kiss, Hermione. That's all I need.'_

"Damn him," she muttered softly. "And his bloody kisses."

The house shuddered softly as someone came in and after a moment, were on the stairs. It was sure to be one of the Weasleys. Her ears perked for a moment.

"Bound to be Fred or George by the sound of it," she said to no one but herself. The thundering on the steps preceded the banging open of the door. Hermione sat bolt upright in the bed and when she saw who it was she got to her feet in an angry huff.

"What are doing, Sirius?" she asked angrily.

"Probably something really stupid," he answered, as he crossed to her.

"Keep your distance, Sirius," she warned, wand in hand.

"Tell me something, Hermione," said Sirius. He stood about three feet from her and didn't look a bit alarmed at the wand pointed at him. "Have you ever felt an attraction to anyone the way you do to me?" He took a half step forward.

"Wh-what does that have to do with anything?" she stammered, the wand twitched in her shaking hand. Sirius took another half step.

"I," he began and paused to sigh. His eyes roamed the walls for a moment before settling on his boots. "I have never…" Sirius raised his head to look at her, a storm roiling in his grey eyes. "I have never wanted a woman the way I want you," he admitted, and dropped his head to speak to his boots again. "And it's a little scary. "So…" he continued, raising his head to look her in the eye again. "So, I just want to know if it is the same for you." He took another small step. The wand was almost touching his chest. "Because, I really think it is Hermione and life is too damn short, too unpredictable to waste opportunities for… for real passion."

Hermione couldn't speak, could barely breathe. The sheer honesty in his confession was just breath taking but she just couldn't… wouldn't give in to him. "S-Sirius I don't know what you're talking about," she lied, but to no avail.

"Then let me show you," he growled, and stepped right into the wand. It slid impotently up his chest as he pulled her against his body. One arm around her waist, the other hand was lost in her curls. He was close enough now that she could smell him and it had a numbing effect on her brain. It was the scent of musk, lavender and leather and it reminded her, oddly, of the Amortentia that Slughorn had brewed in sixth year.

He didn't crush his lips to hers the way she expected but instead teased gently, nothing more than butterflies lighting on her lips. Resistance didn't really come to mind because it was just so damned wonderful. As he added more pressure her mind drifted away pleasantly and when his tongue curled deliciously around hers, she lifted a leg, letting it ride up his thigh as she pressed herself impossibly close to his hard body.

The tiny fire that Ron had managed to ignite but never properly stoke couldn't compare to the inferno that was licking through her veins. There was an agonizingly pleasurable ache between her legs, it flared and sizzled and made her rub her crotch against his thigh in a most wanton manner. She distantly heard something clatter to the floor.

"Hermione," he whispered, as he broke away for air.

'_Hermione,'_ she repeated moronically in her head. Which, after a moment had a clarifying affect and her eyes snapped open.

*SMACK*

Sirius jumped back, his expression hurt, rubbing his cheek where she had slapped him.

"What the _bloody_ hell was that for!" he roared, his cheek now carried a perfect imprint of her hand.

"You kissed me!" she accused, wiping the wet from her mouth as her eyes glanced at the floor where her wand lay. In her haze she had dropped it without realizing.

"You kissed me back, Hermione," said Sirius, pointing out a fact she didn't want to deal with.

"I most certainly did not!" she denied hotly.

"Fine," said Sirius. "Then do us both a favor and not kiss me some more."

"Keep your lips to yourself, Sirius Black," said Hermione, deftly out maneuvering his lunge as she escaped through the open door.

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**A/N**: Thank you for the reviews. They were lovely as always.

Yes, I did update and the realized some glaring errors that had to be fixed. I'm very sorry.


	11. Repercussions

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of the characters, I just like to play with them**

"What did you do?" The tired sounding question held a note of familiarity, as though it had been asked a thousand times before.

"She – I – She." Sigh. With each choked out word Sirius would look up, finger raised, only to be defeated by some force as yet unnamed. Defensive in tone, Sirius finally managed to get out a whole sentence.

"She wants me as much as I want her, damn it." It was unclear who he was trying to convince; himself or Remus, or perhaps the absent Hermione.

Remus eased into the room and glanced around at the evidence of teenage witch. A worn out leather shoe violated the sanctity of the fluffy pink throw rug, threadbare in spots, but still defiantly girlish. The creak of protesting joints preceded long fingers that wrapped around Hermione's wand, forgotten on the floor where she dropped it.

"You know I actually believe you're right, Padfoot," said Remus, as he pulled a wooden chair from beneath what had probably once been a writing desk. Still might be, but an identification was made impossible as it was covered under a mountain of unbearably precious artifacts. "But you are going about it all wrong." Remus settled into the chair with one last glance at the desk, menacing in its fuzzy, glittery cuteness.

"What should I do differently?" asked Sirius. He knew what Remus meant. He was loath to admit just how wrong his approach really was. He wasn't sure he could bring himself to confess that he had just impulsively grabbed and kissed Hermione, or that he had been slapped.

"That's hard to answer," said Remus calmly, "since I still don't know what you did wrong."

"I just thought I'd cut through all of the nonsense," said Sirius evasively. "So I did, and I know she felt it too. That's why I don't understand why she…"

Sirius trailed off, dangerously close to an admission he didn't want to make. The silence that passed seemed to drag. Sirius stared hard at the long pink fibers on the rug, watching as in the quiet a few doxies poked their head out from under the bed, bright blue and wings a flutter. He absolutely refused to look up at Remus because he knew the guilt would show on his face like fairy lights on a Christmas tree.

Finally Remus spoke.

"Padfoot, you didn't –"

Sirius looked up miserably and nodded before Remus could finish. He didn't want to hear the words spoken out loud.

"Merlin's Robes," breathed Remus. "You fool." Remus twirled Hermione's wand in his nimble fingers for a moment. "Well, I must say I'm impressed with her restraint."

"What?"

"Well, look at you, you don't appear to have been hexed," replied Remus thoughtfully, but hummed a small amused sound when Sirius fidgeted and looked away. "So, not a hex, what then? Did she slap you, because you certainly earned it."

Sirius gave Remus a black look.

"Well, good for her. I suppose those are her Muggle tendencies showing through," said Remus, his expression one of intrigue over this bit of insight.

"Muggle?" Sirius sounded genuinely surprised. "She's Muggleborn?"

Remus smiled. "Interesting that, isn't it? You always could sniff them out."

"Well, they were… a little something out of the ordinary for me, weren't they?" said Sirius defensively. "Exotic somehow… I mean, seeing our world through their eyes… I don't know, I always got a deeper sense for how unique and special our abilities really are. It always made me grateful that it didn't just run in wizarding families." Sirius looked up to see a rather amused expression on Remus' face. "Oh, shut it you," he grumbled.

Remus laughed. "I didn't say a word, Padfoot."

"You were thinking it, something. I don't know what… do I amuse you, Remus?" Sirius looked away, appearing both embarrassed and petulant.

From a few floors beneath them, an apparent herd of elephants were on the stairs. A minute later it was revealed to only be Harry and Ron. Harry wore a concerned frown, eyes darting between Remus and Sirius.

"Why did Hermione ask Harry to come up here and get her wand?" asked Ron. He looked like he was fit to burst with curiosity and annoyed at the same time. The aggravation laced in Ron's tone told Sirius all he needed to know; Ron wasn't happy about his pursuit of Hermione.

"Where is her wand?" asked Harry quietly, eyes trained on Sirius.

Remus handed it over and then Harry gave it to Ron. A silent exchange took place before Ron acquiesced. Harry closed the door behind him and then looked around the room.

"I had forgotten just how girly it was in here," he said to lighten the mood a little. The small room really didn't afford many places to sit down, so he leaned casually against the door.

"Alright, just how bad is it? I've never seen Hermione so angry." Harry's tone was mild, but it carried a note of reproof and something else, something steely, cold even.

"Have – Have you ever felt – no known, known something was right? In your gut, it's more than just belief –"

"Sirius, you've only known her three days, mate," said Harry exasperated. "And in that time you have managed to get such a reaction out of her –" Harry paused, briefly at a loss for words. "Well, I've never seen her dislike someone the way she does you." Harry picked out something glittery and vaguely reptilian from one of Ginny's shelves. "And honestly, I can hardly blame her."

Remus stared at Harry, his expression stunned with a tinge of something wistful. Sirius looked like he'd seen a ghost.

"What?" asked Harry suspiciously, and then examined his robes, pulling and patting.

"Sorry," said Remus. "It's just for a minute there you sounded just –"

"Like James," finished Sirius.

"His Emmeline Pierce speech to you," agreed Remus, nodding.

"Almost verbatim," grumbled Sirius.

"Though it was sort of humorous at the time since he wasn't making headway with Lily," continued Remus with a chuckle.

"But –" Harry sighed. "If it didn't work with the other witch, why try it again?"

"Because the hard to get ones always confuse him," said Remus with a large smirk. "He knows what to do with the witches that throw themselves at him but… well, it's his way of handling being flustered. Not very effective though, is it?"

Sirius' looked unhappier than ever.

"So, you know her, what should I do?" he asked helplessly.

"Well, first I'd leave her alone for awhile," said Harry. "After that, I'm not sure. She's never been confronted with a wizard like you."

"Actually, after that you'll be like any other poor sod who wants a little of her attention," said Remus. "She looks fantastic doesn't she?"

"She does," said Sirius miserably. "Even today when she clearly wasn't trying that hard, she's still bloody kissable."

Harry put a hand up. "Please stop. That's more than I wanted to know."

"So, I leave her alone and then what?" asked Sirius.

"You have other things to worry about, don't you?" suggested Remus. "I thought you were going to open an investigative agency."

"Yeah, we've talk about that," said Sirius, with a little jerk of his head to indicate Harry. "Something like a contract office for the Ministry."

"Focus on that," offered Remus. "Try not to pester her, and actually attempt to do things for her that please her."

"Right," said Sirius thoughtfully. "Right. What pleases her?"

"Well, I think half the fun is in the figuring it out, don't you agree, Harry?"

"Oh, absolutely," said Harry with a large grin.

"I could learn to hate you both," grumbled Sirius.

~o0o~

Frustrated, Hermione paced her room like a caged lioness. The second floor bedroom was quiet except for the sound of her feet tracing over the same steps in a hypnotic, but rather dreary dance. She was angry and more than a little confused by the intense feelings Sirius evoked. He had no right to kiss her like that, but oh Circe, what a kiss that was. Her toe caught on the edge of the throw rug making her stumble a little.

"Damn it!" she swore viciously.

Oh Merlin, this just wasn't her. All over a stupid, arrogant, handsome…

"No," she refused. "You will not think that last one. He is an arse who has no respect for you, or he would never have pushed himself on you like that."

The old bed groaned as she settled onto the edge of it. She massaged her throbbing toe first and then curled up in the middle of the bed. She wasn't so silly as to deny that she had an attraction for him. Well, honestly – who wouldn't? He was ridiculously handsome, almost beautiful but in a wholly masculine way. Tall and toned with sharp angles in his face, shoulder length silky black locks and the eyes… It was all a rather unfortunate distraction to his rather difficult personality.

"Only difficult for me though," she said miserably. "Everyone else thinks he's bloody fantastic."

She would dearly love to go to her office and get some work done there, but Harry had asked her for one more day. There was no one to commiserate with because they were all at the stupid party. She would get no sympathy from Ginny or Molly who were clearly in love with the prat already.

It was miserable to feel this alone. If anyone were jumping to her defense, they weren't doing it where she could see. That too was frustrating. She didn't want to come out and ask if anyone had told the prat off, because she was clearly more than capable of handling it herself.

Try as she might though, with nothing but her poor hurt toe to distract her, the kiss did invade. She couldn't have guessed that was what he was coming in for. Well, perhaps that was a lie. 'I'm about to give you the kiss of your short, little life' was written all over his face. Matters were made worse by the fact that thoughts of kissing him had invaded her daydreaming prior to the event itself. Her day dreams paled in comparison to what his lips on hers really felt like. Or that of his tongue dancing deliciously with hers.

"Stop this," she commanded quietly.

Fine, if admitting she fancied him was what it took, she could do that, but only to herself. He hadn't earned her consideration even if his one kiss made all of Ron's look like slobbery mistakes in comparison. She was stronger than that, stronger than him.

Slowly, she stretched out on her bed and hugged a pillow tight, cold comfort though it was.

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**A/N**: Thank you for the reviews to this story. They've been lovely!

I apologize for the delay. I'm doing a submission for the Big Bang Blackout (Sirius/Hermione of course) which is completed and with the betas know. I've got another submission for a different fest that I'll be working on (different pairing though I dare not tell you which) so updates might still be a little slow but the story isn't dead. I'm just distracted with other stories.


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